The Other Aztec Treasure
by icebluehost
Summary: Vanessa aka Sharpshooter Marine is back and this time she's taken her best friend along for the ride. But it's not going to be just fun and games anymore. This time there are lives at stake and dangers to face at every turn.....SEQUEL TO "The Beginning"
1. Surprise Surprise

**AN:** Finally! I can upload the first chapter to the story! Well, for those who are reading this just now, read _The Beginning_. For those who have read that, welcome back! This time, it's nothing but originality so I hope you'll be entertained with the plot I have in store for our lovely characters. Reviews shall be much appreciated!

* * *

**_"You're not joking with me are you? You really believe that I come from another world." - Carrie Lockheart _**

**Chapter 1 - Surprise Surprise**

Commodore James Norrington hated surprises. Unfortunately for him, he has experienced nothing else but that. It all started a month ago, with suddenly finding Jack Sparrow in the docks at Port Royal. What surprised him there was the fact that Jack Sparrow had saved Elizabeth Swann from drowning and thus made his presence known before the Royal Navy, something most pirates don't normally do. Then other pirates, specifically from the infamous Black Pearl, suddenly came into the port and attacked the town, taking Elizabeth with them as a result. He never expected the blacksmith Will Turner to free Jack Sparrow from the dungeon cells in order to go out there and save Elizabeth. Therefore he was caught off guard when Jack Sparrow stole-or commandeered, as the pirate would say-the Interceptor.

So he, together with Elizabeth's father the Governor, immediately went out to sea and looked for any sign of them. He was greeted with a very high, very large and very black smoke signal coming from a small little island a few days later. He expected to save a few sailors who had crashed onto the shore by accident, but instead he saw Jack Sparrow and Elizabeth Swann stranded on the island. Another shocking but good surprise was when Elizabeth had agreed to his proposal of marriage. He soon learned that the young woman had simply used the idea in order for him to go and save her dear Will. He had been foolish; to have been so gullible as to fall for a simple lie as that.

And that was how he had found himself riding on a small rowboat to the caves of Isla de Muerta together with Jack Sparrow then. He had no choice but to listen to the pirate and let him lead him and his men to wherever he chose; more likely to their demise. More surprises came to him when his ship fell to a surprise attack by the cursed pirates. Norrington almost didn't make it back to the ship. In the middle of the losing battle, Norrington saw that the curse had been lifted and the pirates had become mortal once more. They were lucky to have survived that attack.

Norrington thought things were going to get better after that. Elizabeth came back to the ship with Will, Jack Sparrow and the other notorious female pirate, Sharpshooter Marine. They came to Port Royal without any trouble at all and Jack Sparrow was scheduled to be hanged that very next day. Things were going so well with Norrington, that he never expected it when Marine suddenly disappeared in the dungeon cell or when Will Turner suddenly showed up at the hanging and confessed his love for Elizabeth or when Jack Sparrow escaped death through their help. He had become a pathetic Commodore, one who would be laughed at behind his back. Well enough is enough. James Norrington will not allow anyone, especially pirates, to shame him further.

"Commodore sir!" One of his men cried as he ran into Norrington's office with a letter in hand. "We have news of the pirates you seek." Norrington calmly stood up from his desk and placed his hands behind his back. This is what he has been waiting for ever since that day the two pirates escaped his grasp.

"Speak."

"Although we haven't found the person herself, one of our men has found out, from reliable sources, the location of Sharpshooter Marine's current place of living. If we go there and secure the area, we will have better chances of capturing her as soon as she came to her home. Jack Sparrow is still nowhere to be found, though. We assume that he has not landed on the larger and well known ports in the Caribbean. Further news shall be sent as soon as they spot him."

Norrington pondered on this newest piece of information as he stared outside the window. Yes, they could go on to Sharpshooter Marine's home and wait for her there. As for Jack Sparrow...

"Take 20 of our men and send them to this location. I want Sharpshooter Marine captured alive no matter what the cost. I will not take any chances with these pirates. The other pirate can wait. Continue to keep an eye for Jack Sparrow and send word for me as soon as you have news of him. It will not be long now; Jack Sparrow will be forced to land on a British Port. That is when we get our hands on him." He said. The guard saluted Norrington then with his leave, walked out of the office as fast as he could. Norrington gave a heavy sigh and fell back to his chair. His work as a Commodore was never finished no matter how much he'd do in a single day. He looked at his table and was about to get the papers he needed to sign when he noticed an invitation card lying somewhere in the pile. He moved some of the papers away to get it then stared at it sadly.

Will Turner and Elizabeth Swann were going to get married in less than a month, and he had been asked to become the Best Man for their wedding day two weeks earlier. It was not to irritate him or mock him of what he had lost, although he was still a tad bit sore about being rejected right after Elizabeth had accepted the proposal. He knew because the blacksmith told him the very words as he handed the invitation to him personally.

_"I just want us to push aside our differences or whatever else had come between us in the past and become good friends Norrington." Will had told him. "Honestly I would have asked Jack Sparrow to become my Best Man. But seeing as it is currently impossible for that to happen, I would like to ask you to take the role."_

_"Why?" He asked. "Is it to mock me Turner? Perhaps you would enjoy making me watch you and Elizabeth get married while I stand idly by looking like a rejected fool."_

_"No, I didn't invite you for that reason. If I wanted to annoy you and make a fool out of you I would not have invited you to the wedding, picked a place for the wedding where you will get to see it, then visit you after the ceremonies were done and remind you what a gullible, desperate man you've been. Then I'd finish it all off by telling everyone in the Royal Navy that you let a pirate go free just because the woman you loved and the man she loved prevented you from killing him." Norrington gritted his teeth in irritation and tried not to get his hands on Will's throat. Will sensed the annoyance but smirked at him._

_"But like I said before, I'm not here to make you an enemy of mine. I want to become your friend Norrington. Both Elizabeth and I do." Norrington stayed silent as he looked at anything but the man before him. Then after heaving a heavy sigh, he turned his attention back to the blacksmith and took the card he was holding out to him._

_"I thank you for the invitation. I...would be honored to become your best man Will Turner."_

A knock on the door interrupted his thoughts as he placed back the card on top of the messy pile on his desk. And as if thinking of them had magically called them to him, Will Turner and Elizabeth Swann entered his office. He stood up from his desk and tried to rearrange his wig which had become a bit ruffled after a few days of neglecting it. His face reddened with embarrassment but neither of the newcomers seemed to notice it or simply ignored it.

"Commodore, my father and I would like to invite you to a small party at my home." Elizabeth told him, long golden blond hair framing a face with a friendly smile. "Mr. Turner would appreciate coming to the party together with a familiar face, as I'm sure you would be if you accepted." Norrington recovered from his initial reaction and made a small bow.

"I would be more than happy to come to this little party Miss Swann. Allow me some minutes to refreshen myself before I engage in any sort of social activity."

"Thank you Commodore. Mr. Turner and I shall wait for you downstairs if you do not mind." With a last short but polite bow, the couple went out of the office, leaving Norrington alone to his thoughts. He knew he didn't have much time before Elizabeth lost her patience with him so he immediately brushed his wig and straightened out his clothes as best as he could in his current state. After taking a deep breath, he grabbed his tricorn hat from the stand beside the door and walked down the stairs to the entrance of the building where Elizabeth and Will waited.

* * *

Carrie opened her emerald green eyes and found herself lying on filthy ground, staring up at the blue, cloudy sky. She sat up and groaned as her head throbbed in unexplainable pain. She couldn't remember what happened to her. The last thing she saw was a bright light coming from Vanessa's Aztec coin and then...nothing. She looked around and inspected her surroundings as her headache subsided into a slight and irritating pounding. Dark and dirty stone walls surrounded her from three sides; two beside her and one behind her, with doors and windows along them. The ground she sat on was very dusty and was filled with many crates of useless pieces of junk. She peered forward at the only way out and saw an old house across the road. People and carriages of all sorts were passing by the opening without taking any notice of her. From what she could make out of what she saw, she assumed that she was in an alleyway. She widened her eyes as what she thought of sinked into her mind. 

"How the hell did I get here?!" She cried to no one in particular. Her mind began to whirl about in panic as she stood up so fast and almost lost her balance through the sudden rush of blood in her head. She closed her eyes and tried to diminish the dizziness that came on her. At the same time she battled with her thoughts and attempted to calm herself down as she took deep breaths.

_Calm down Carrie. There's no reason to run around screaming in panic. Now, think. Did someone just drop me here in this alley? If no, then how? If yes, why? They couldn't be robbers or rapists, else I would either have been tied up or stipped off my clothing. Dragging me all the way to this alley makes no sense. And just how did I become unconscious? Was it because of the coin? It seems impossible that some stranger would get a hold of that coin and place some kind of device or gas that would knock me out. And did that flash of light mean anything important? How long was I even out cold? Whatever knocked me unconscious must have been strong for me to have slept through the whole time they brought me here._

As soon as she could stand up without needing any sort of support, she began to walk towards the opening of the alley. She poked her head out and looked around, squinting and blinking against the glare of the light as she adjusted to the brightness. When she could see clearly, her face went pale and her body froze in fear. She was looking at rows and rows of old, rundown houses. People in clothes that should have been out-of-style for centuries walked about their businesses. Carriages rushed past the crowded road instead of cars or taxis or buses. What really sent her panicking though, was the fact that she couldn't recognize anything about her surroundings. She took a step back into the dark alley and stared with glazed eyes. Her knees felt too weak all of a sudden, and it took her everything she had to keep herself upright.

"Just where am I...?" She whispered.

"Hey you! The lass over there! What are ye doing near my house?!" A man yelled behind her. Carrie spun her head around and widened her eyes when a man came out of one of the doors carrying a cudgel in his hand defensively. She raised her hands up and shook her head at him as she slowly backed away.

"N-nothing sir! I-I was just..."

"Get out of here and leave my house alone if ye know what's good for ye lassie! Now!" He stepped forward and swung his cudgel around wildly. Carrie gave a short scream and began to run out of the alley and away from the man. She blindly ran forward, bumping into whatever crossed her way, without any regards to where she was going. She could catch a few curses and a few angry calls as she ran past the people but she ignored them all and never stopped running until she couldn't take another step. When she decided to take a break from all that running, she realized that she was standing at the top of a stone fort that overlooked the docks where all the ships were stationed at. Little tiny dots that she knew were people moved about in an ongoing stream as busily as ants. Beyond the port, the water spread farther and farther into the horizon, where she caught a few ships heading towards the docks. She gazed at everything she could see before her and was stunned. She found the place familiar to her for some reason.

"So, what do ye think of the town lass?" A voice spoke behind her. Carrie turned around cautiously and saw three men standing a few meters away from her. She didn't need to look beyond the dirty, worn out clothes they wore and the messy, unkempt look they had to tell that they weren't the best people to be associated with. The man in the middle, the one who spoke, flashed his yellow teeth in a lecherous smile that sent shivers of disgust down her spine. "It's pretty isn't it?"

"It is..." She murmured hesitantly, barely loud enough for the man to hear.

"Yer not from around 'ere are ye lass?" He asked, taking a step forward. "I can tell by yer looks and by yer accent." The other two men followed in the footsteps of their leader and began to circle around Carrie, blocking her every means of escape. Carrie looked around her frantically as she backed away from them step after step.

"I...I guess I am a foreigner in these parts. Can you tell me where I am?" She asked them. The leader of the group stopped then gave a small chuckle.

"Where ye are? That be a strange question yer asking lass. But I'll play along for yer sake." He gave her another perverted smile that made Carrie want to gag and barf over the stone edge. "Ye be in Port Royal lass. Have ye ever heard of it? How's about ye spend the nigh' with us while we show ye around." Carrie widened her eyes at the name and ignored the rest of what the man said.

_Port Royal?! That's impossible! How can I be in Port Royal? No wait...maybe it's the real Port Royal. I mean, not the one in the Pirates of the Caribbean movie. But how the hell did I end up here?! I was at New York the last time I checked. Was I that out of it? This is getting weirder by the minute...unless..._

Carrie suddenly felt herself explode into laughter, shocking the three men from going further towards her. They looked at each other in puzzlement then stared at her warily. The leader began to think if it would be smart to go on with this woman. He was about to signal his men to leave when Carrie recovered from her outburst and looked around her with a smile.

"Oh that was good. You almost had me going there." She began as her laughter slowed down to a chuckle. "I thought I was going nuts from all the stress I'm having. But the jig is up. I know your little plan now. So where's the cameraman huh? I know he's hiding here somewhere. Vanessa and her parents are probably in this too. Are they hiding over there?" She asked, pointing over the columned posts lined up behind the three men. "I want to give them a piece of my mind for making me worry sick over them." The three looked at each other once more. One of them shrugged while the other scratched his head in confusion. The one in the middle glanced at Carrie and crossed his arms, peering at her intently with one eye.

"Yer not drunk are ye lass? Or maybe yer gettin' sick."

"I'm not sick and I'm definitely not drunk!" Carrie cried indignantly. She narrowed her eyes at them and mirrored the man's arms. "This isn't funny anymore. I found you out. You're supposed to laugh along with me and tell me that I was fooled by whatever show I'm on right now. Then Vanessa will come out of her hiding place and laugh with me, telling me what a gullible fool I've been. Why do you persist on this acting?"

"Listen missy, we're not 'acting' an' no one's hidin' from ye." The man said, annoyance clearly evident from the tone of his voice. "Why don't ye just keep quiet while we take ye with us?"

"No! I'm tired of playing with you. Tell me where Vanessa is!" She demanded. "If you don't tell me where she is I'll beat you all up until you can't stand up anymore." She threatened. The three men stared at her for a few seconds then suddenly roared with laughter. Carrie's face turned red and she clenched her fist in anger, knuckles turning white from the tightness of her grip. Then without any hesitation she charged at the man in the middle, pulling back her arm then swinging it hard at the man's cheek. He never expected the woman to punch him, and was stunned in surprise as he fell to the ground on his back. Carrie stared silently, anger quickly subsiding, and when she realized what she just did, she turned red; this time from embarrassment. She had never meant to raise a fist against anyone, especially if that man was simply trying to do his job. She opened her mouth and tried to apologize for what she did but stopped when she sensed a sudden change in the mood of the talk.

The other two men had stopped laughing when they realized what had happened and looked behind them to check on their leader, who lay sprawled on the ground. When they turned back their angry gazes to Carrie, they decided that playtime was over.

"Why you little-"

What passed within the next few seconds happened so fast that Carrie could do nothing but stand there in stunned shock. One of them took out a dagger from the inside of his shirt then came at her like a hound at a cornered fox while growling angrily at her. Once he was close enough, he raised the silver weapon up in the air and slashed downwards at the same time some shadowed stranger rushed towards the man, pushed him and sent him flying to the side. The man with the dagger was taken aback, but since the movement was too late to stop, the dagger he held ended up brushing across Carrie's left arm. The two collapsed in a tangled heap and struggled with each other right there on the ground. The stranger wrestled impressively with the other but the man's accomplices weren't just standing there doing nothing. In no time at all, the three men were standing free from any hands and began to make a run for it. The sound of a whistle brought Carrie out of her reverie. The voice of a man could be heard shouting over the noisy commotion.

"Do not move any further."

All three froze at the familiar sound of the man's voice. They could hear the slow and casual sound of his footsteps as he walked towards them with his hands clasped behind his back. They turned to face him and paled as they took in the sight of the man before them. That and the other dozen uniformed guards running towards them from afar. Carrie turned to look at the man as well and widened her eyes. Although his clothes and hat were not as fresh and his wig not as well combed, his presence was still overwhelming. And despite his relaxed form, he emitted an aura of alertness like a dangerous wolf that was not yet sure of its safety. A young woman dressed in an elegant white dress rushed up to the man's side and when she saw Carrie, walked closer to her.

"Oh dear! Are you alright miss?" Smooth and gentle hands took hold of her own as the blond haired woman inspected the bloody, shallow gash on her arm. She frowned at the wound and turned a grateful gaze to the man who was standing up from his previous brawl with one of the men. "It was a good thing that Will saw those three men going after you. If he hadn't gotten there in time you could have been seriously injured." She said. The man called Will fixed his hair, which was tied back in a short ponytail, and brushed the dust off from his clothes. Then he walked up to them and looked at Carrie in concern.

"Don't worry miss. We shall accompany you to Miss Elizabeth Swann's home and take care of that gash on your arm. I am sure that Commodore Norrington will be more than happy to send escorts to take you back home afterwards." He said, turning his gaze to the other man. Norrington's lips curled into a small frown at the plan but it disappeared instantly as he saw Carrie looking at him.

"It is no problem at all ma'am. I shall even escort you there myself." He said, making a polite bow towards her.

Carrie was still speechless as she stared first at the three men who were being clasped into chains then at Will, Norrington and Elizabeth. Her mind was running like mad, assessing facts and events that happened all within a few minutes. She opened and closed her mouth repeatedly as she tried to say something but somehow couldn't with everything dropping onto her without warning. Then after swallowing a lump that somehow appeared in her throat, she spoke in a hoarse voice.

"You're...you're all real aren't you? Those men back there...they would have killed me...they..." Elizabeth widened her eyes and caught Carrie before she could fall to the ground. Will and Norrington rushed to Elizabeth's aid and sighed in relief when they found that the young woman had just fainted.

"What did she mean by real?" Will asked to no one in particular. "Did she actually think that those men wouldn't hurt her or do something to her?" Norrington shrugged in reply.

"Let us save the questions we have now for later and take this girl to Miss Elizabeth's home first."

* * *

Carrie blinked her eyes open and stared up at the ceiling confusedly. She couldn't check if she recognized the room she was in because it was pitch black. The scenery outside showed her that it was night time, with the moon covered by the clouds and the rain pelting against the windows. The sounds of rain falling onto the rooftops calmed her somehow, and kept her from screaming with panic and fright. As she lied there on the unfamiliar bed, she remembered what happened to her earlier; recalled the meeting with the three men, to be rescued a few minutes after by three people who weren't supposed to exist outside of the movie she had recently watched and adored. 

_Was it all just a dream?_

She sat up, rubbing her eyes as she did, and noticed that her left arm was wrapped up in bandages. As soon as she saw it all her hopes of what happened being just a dream shattered into little pieces. A headache from all the thinking and confusion appeared and she made a soft groan as she massaged her forehead. Right at that moment she heard the sound of the door opening and turned to where the sound came from. She had to squint her eyes as sudden light coming from a small lamp flooded into the room. She couldn't see who had entered but knew by the sound of the other's voice as soon as they spoke.

"I am glad to see that you're finally awake." Elizabeth told her as she set the lamp on a table and sat down on the edge of the bed. Carrie's mind was still hazy from her sleep as she watched Elizabeth set down something on her lap. She examined it and felt cloth as she held it out. A few minutes later she realized what she held and took off the covers from herself. She was wearing a white nightdress, although it wasn't exactly a perfect fit, Elizabeth being just as tall as her friend Vanessa who was 5'7. The dress was supposed to reach only up to her ankles but it stretched out to her feet.

"I had the maids change you and clean up your clothes for you." Elizabeth explained to her as if reading her mind. Carrie stood up from the bed and looked nervously at Elizabeth.

"Um...thank you. Can I wear them now? I don't feel comfortable wearing other people's clothes..." She told her, turning slightly red from embarrassment. Elizabeth smiled comfortingly and nodded as she stood up from the bed as well.

"Of course. There is a screen over there where you can change in without anyone seeing." Elizabeth said as she pointed towards a folded up object at the corner of the room. "I hope you don't mind. I would like to ask you a few questions that I feel must be answered as soon as possible." She explained. Carrie smiled back at her and nodded.

"It's alright I don't mind answering. But..." She began as she unfolded the screen and went behind it. It was dark, but the light the moon casted down from the window made soft silhouettes on the thin paper screen. Elizabeth could see her moving about as she changed from the nightdress into her jeans and plain shirt. "I would like you to answer one of my own first. Just one question before you start interrogating me."

"Of course. What is your question then." The shadowed form of Carrie stopped in the middle of pulling up her pants. She peeped from the side of the screen, revealing her pale skinned face, and looked at Elizabeth warily.

"Are you _really_ Elizabeth Swann? Did Will Turner and Commodore Norrington save me earlier and is this truly Port Royal?" Elizabeth was startled by the question and couldn't answer her for a few minutes until she recovered herself and gave Carrie a small smile. She had been hesitant of her decision at first, knowing that it would have been very embarrassing if she had made a mistake. But now the young woman's question made it clear to Elizabeth that she was not wrong in her suspicions.

"Yes. I am Elizabeth, but you can call me Liz. You were saved by my fiancee Will and the Commodore, and you are in Port Royal." She answered. "I can tell from your clothes that you are not from around here so I understand if you are not so sure of that."

"You have no idea how right you are in that." Carrie muttered as she went back to the screen to continue changing herself. Elizabeth heard that comment though, and gave a soft chuckle.

"Oh I believe I do have an idea." She said, making Carrie blush in embarrassment. She had not known that her voice had been so loud for Elizabeth to hear. Elizabeth gave a soft chuckle, and told her that she was not angry or offended by the comment. Then she went on explaining to Carrie what she meant. "If I may be so bold as to ask, are you from another world? I know this may sound weird but somehow there is a feeling in me that tells me it is so." Carrie widened her eyes as she placed her shirt over her head, her mouth gaping open in shock. When she realized what she was doing, she closed it and began to stutter at Elizabeth.

"But you-how did-it's not-" Carrie took a deep breath to calm herself down, pulled her shirt over her head, then looked at Elizabeth past the screen seriously. "You're not joking with me are you? You really believe that I come from another world." Elizabeth nodded to her.

"Yes, I believe you even if you had not mentioned it first. Your reactions tonight and earlier on told me that you knew us from before, even if we had never met you before in our whole lives. You see, I had a friend who came upon the same predicament you are in presently. She's gone now, we don't know where, but I shall never forget her, or what happened during my time with her. She told us her story about how she came from a different world and how she knew most of what would happen to us because she read a book about it. The only difference in you two though, is that you came here as yourself while she came here as another person who lived here in this world and in truth, is still a part of her own self." Carrie blinked at the last of Elizabeth's explanation and massaged her head from all the pain the overwhelming of information was giving her.

"So there was someone else who came to this world...who you guessed came from my own world...who lived the life of another person...who is in fact, a part of this world and a part of her own self." She repeated. Elizabeth nodded in reply. Carrie gave a weary sigh and shook her head as she went back to the bed and sat down on it unceremoniously.

"If I wasn't a part of all this mess I would claim this whole thing was insane." She said. Elizabeth giggled softly as she sat down with her.

"I must admit that this is a bit farfetched to believe. But after being taken by cursed pirates and fighting the undead, nothing at all would surprise me any longer." Carrie widened her eyes at her.

"So, does that mean you've met Jack Sparrow and killed Barbossa?" Elizabeth was a bit startled at that. She wasn't used to people knowing without even being there physically. It felt strange and awkward to hear their story from another stranger's mouth. She recovered quickly though and nodded.

"It's been a month since it happened. Jack's probably in some port drinking rum or looking for some new adventure or something similar to that." A smile came to Elizabeth as she remembered the sly, mischievous, irritating pirate with that cocky grin of his. Carrie smiled and giggled. Then she remembered a question she wanted to ask.

"So are you and Will Turner getting married soon?" Elizabeth blushed at the question but as she answered, a bright smile lit up her face.

"Yes...we're getting married in less than a month from now." Carrie clapped her hands cheerfully and congratulated her. She liked the pairing and felt sorry for Will when Jack and Elizabeth kissed in the second movie. Then she realized that if they were going to get married soon, then the second movie was close to coming. She bit her lip nervously. She didn't think she was up to facing Davy Jones and the Kraken in real life. Sure it would be fun to pretend to be a pirate hero swinging ropes and slashing about with a sword but she stuck to the reality that she wasn't strong enough for those kinds of things and had no skill to fight anyone. Maybe her best friend Vanessa would, but she wasn't her. Fortunately Elizabeth didn't see her face in the dim light and so she was saved from the trouble of being questioned about it. "I was hoping to invite Jack to the wedding, but that won't fare well with everybody else." She said with regret.

"But why should it matter if they don't like Jack?" Carrie asked her as she crossed her arms. "It's not their wedding they're attending. It's yours. And since you are the host here, they shouldn't have a say in who comes to your wedding and who doesn't." Elizabeth widened her eyes at her then smiled gratefully.

"Thank you. But unfortunately even if we did invite Jack to the wedding, Commodore Norrington and his men are sure to be there waiting for their chance to capture him and send him to the gallows. And even if they won't, I don't have a clue as to Jack's present location. I cannot tell him about the wedding if I can't send him a message about it." Carrie frowned slightly and dropped her arms to her sides.

"Oh. That's right. I haven't thought about that." She said with a small pout. "Too bad I won't get to see Jack Sparrow. He's my absolute favorite character from the movie." Elizabeth looked at her and tilted her head to the side in confusion.

"Mo...vie?" Carrie widened her eyes as she realized what she said. If she remembered correctly, Elizabeth had mentioned being told that they were in a book, not a movie. Now that she thought about it, that would have been for the best. She didn't think she could explain to anyone what a movie was. She smiled at the other woman and shook her head.

"Forget I said it. I was thinking of something else. What I meant to say was, Jack Sparrow is my favorite character in the book I read." She said.

"I see..." Elizabeth said. She looked at Carrie, then was about to ask her another question when she remembered something. "I'm sorry...I've been speaking to you all this time and I still don't know your name. May I ask what it is?" Carrie looked at her then smiled brightly.

"Of course! My name is Carrie Lockheart. But I prefer to be called Carrie if you don't mind."

"No, I don't. It is a pleasure to meet you Carrie." Before they could say anything else they both heard a loud thump outside of their room. Elizabeth stood up from the bed and walked towards it in caution. Carrie followed Elizabeth and walked right behind her reluctantly. Her hands found their way to Elizabeth's shoulders and her whole body trembled in fear as they neared the door. Her knees grew weak and felt like jelly as she forced them to walk. Her heart pounded loudly through her chest so hard that it felt like the heart was trying to burst out of her chest. The pounding rain outside of the house, and the deafening roar of the thunder only made her fear get worse. Elizabeth seemed to sense her anxiety as she stopped and turned to hold Carrie's hand and squeezed it in a comforting manner.

"Everything will be alright. Just stay close to me and don't make any noise." She told her. Carrie nodded silently and knotted her brows in determination, taking deep and calming breaths as she followed Elizabeth. After giving Carrie a reassuring smile, Elizabeth took hold of the doorknob and twisted it open as softly as she could. Before she could go out though, someone pulled the door out of Elizabeth's grip and entered the room forcefully. Elizabeth tried to scream but the stranger quickly placed a wet hand on her mouth and began dragging her back in as he closed the door behind him. Carrie widened her eyes and was about to call for help as well but stopped when she saw a glint of something silver, its reflection caught by the light from the lamp, placed to Elizabeth's throat. It felt like something got caught down her own throat. Carrie couldn't scream or shout even if she wanted to. She stood there frozen still as the drenched man walked towards her, dragging Elizabeth as he did, with a large and mischievous grin on his face.

"Well hullo there poppet."

* * *

After a 'lovely' night at Governor Swann's, Commodore Norrington was happy to be back in his office, doing paperwork and the like. The party itself wasn't that horrible. Will willingly and gladly kept him company through the whole night. He enjoyed conversing with the blacksmith, as much as he hated to admit it. Perhaps after a few more months of reovery from his 'heartbreak', they would become quite a pair. But the reason he did not like the party that night, or any other party for the past month for that matter, was the fact that Governor Swann and his friends were trying to set him up with some other appropriate lady to be his wife. He met up with woman, after woman, after woman, who all seemed to be as snooty and stuck-up as their rich and power-hungry fathers. Norrington tried to evade most of their attempts at matchmaking but couldn't hide from all of the women that whole night. Will had been very amused as he watched it all happen, making Norrington feel even worse. To his amusement, the storm arrived, matching his mood perfectly. 

Fortunately for him, the night was almost over. He looked forward to going to his nice, soft, warm, comfy bed as soon as he made some last minute signing on some of the more important reports that had come to him while he was away. These were simple reports, though important for him to approve or know of. As he was working on a last few that he planned to finish, a loud pounding erupted on the door. Norrington stood up from his chair quickly and grabbed his sword which was lying on the table. He walked towards the door cautiously as it continued to shake violently. He was pondering on whether to open it or not when he heard the familiar voice of Will Turner.

"Norrington open the door!" Norrington heaved a sigh of relief as he recovered himself and walked to open the door for him. He was surprised to find not only the blacksmith but the governor as well, barging into his room like some madmen. He turned around and faced them as they paced about restlessly. He immediately sensed that something was terribly wrong when he noticed that the two men were in their nightgowns and were soaking wet.

"What has happened Turner?" He asked. Will looked at Norrington with a very pained and raging face, heightened by the sudden flash of lightning outside his office window. It reminded Norrington of the time Elizabeth had been taken by pirates. He realized what he had thought and paled slightly. "No, don't tell me..."

"Someone has kidnapped my daughter!" Governor Swann cried angrily as he looked at Norrington. His wig was missing and his hair was so damp that if it weren't for the situation, Norrington would have thought it funny. "She has disappeared from her rooms together with that other woman you supposedly saved. She must have taken Elizabeth while everyone thought her weak and defenseless. I shouldn't have agreed to let the despicable woman stay within our homes. Commodore we must do something!"

"Calm down sir, we do not know of the details, so let us not jump to conclusions. But I shall do everything in my power to rescue your daughter."

"Like the time you helped when Elizabeth was kidnapped the first time?" Will asked him as he narrowed his eyes at Norrington. "Pardon me commodore, but I don't quite agree to your way of rescuing my fiancee. If you can't do something about this then give me permission to do it myself! Give me a ship or a boat at least so that I can go after whoever took Elizabeth."

"Simply going into a ship to rescue someone is not as easy as you think Turner." Norrington replied icily. He was starting to get more irritated at Will as the night ticked on. "Especially if you have a town to consider protecting as well. For, unlike you, I have my duties to every single civilian in Port Royal. It would not be fair for me to dance attendance upon one more than the other. Neither would it be easy for me to hand you a ship or a boat. But Miss Swann is the daughter of the governor, and she is a good friend. Do not assume that I shall simply abandon her to her captors."

"Then pray tell us, what on earth are we supposed to do?!" Governor Swann demanded more than asked. Norrington sighed and massaged his throbbing head. As if to make matters worse, one of the guards patrolling that night entered into the room and saluted at Norrington.

"We have a very urgent report sir!"

"Well? What are you waiting for? Out with it man!" Norrington snapped impatiently. At that exact moment, lightning and thunder erupted and gave a frightening image of Norrington's hard, angry features. The guard seemed taken aback at Norrington's sudden outburst and almost felt afraid at one point, but he recovered himself and looked once at Will and Governor Swann before speaking.

"We have spotted a ship not far from the port sir. They are not doing anything as of now but some of the men have reason to suspect that Sharpshooter Marine is under command of it...or perhaps is in command of it." Norrington swiveled around so fast that the guard almost didn't see him move.

"_She's_ here?! Is she in the town or is she on the ship?" He asked.

"We believe that she is on the ship sir. Not only that, we have just received a report about a stolen rowboat that was headed in that direction. We don't know who stole it or for what but..." The guard didn't have a chance to continue as both Norrington and Will rushed out of the office and raced together towards the docks. They became soaked with the rain from top to bottom, but neither of them cared nor did something about it.

Norrington was the first to arrive and he immediately asked for the harbor master. He asked him about the stolen boat and listened as the man explained to them about how one of the small rowboats suddenly disappeared and how one of his helpers found it headed towards a ship a few miles away from the dock. Norrington gritted his teeth and turned to one of his other guards who had come up to them worriedly with an umbrella in hand.

"Head for one of our ships and tell them to prepare to set sail. Then get me two dozen men as fast as you can and tell them to meet me there as soon as possible. My last order for you would be to tell Gillette that he shall be in charge of things here while I am away. I want everything to be prepared and ready once dawn arrives. Is that understood?" He stated more than asked. The guard gave a quick salute and after giving Norrington his umbrella for protection from the rain, immediately ran as fast as he could to do what the commodore asked from him. Will looked at Norrington and was about to open his mouth when the commodore beat him to it.

"You can ease your worries a little Turner, I plan on bringing you along with me even if you hadn't asked." He said as if reading the blacksmith's mind. Will closed his mouth, then gave him a smile that never reached his eyes. His hair was plastered to his face because of the rain and the sweat from all the running, giving him an insane, mad look. Norrington was almost afraid of the blacksmith before him, and wondered what would have happened had he disagreed to letting Will come along.

"What about your duty to the town Commodore?" He asked him. Norrington's thoughts of Will's intimidation disappeared as he frowned at him irritatingly, then gave him a smile of equal sentiment. He was probably looking a bit insane too, with his own wig soggy, soaked and plastered to his own face along with his coat.

"Capturing pirates and sending them to their deaths is part of my duty to the town Turner." Before any of them could say anything else, more of his guards came up to him. This time, they held a bruised man in their arms, wrapped up in a long, dark coat that was too long for him with a small tricorn hat perched on the top of his head. Norrington barely took notice of him as one of the guards spoke.

"We found him lying unconscious near a stack of crates where the stolen rowboat was sir." He explained. "What do we do with him?" Norrington widened his eyes then narrowed them at the man. A grim determination was plastered to his face, and if the unconscious man had seen it, he would have shaken so hard his knees couldn't keep him upright.

"Take him to the ship we are preparing to set sail in. I plan on bringing this man along with us for interrogation and for further information." The guards saluted and began to walk away, carrying their unwanted burden with them. Norrington's vision suddenly blurred and with his free hand, he rubbed his eyes off sleep as much as he could with a soft curse. He can't take a rest now, not when pirates have roamed the town and taken hostage of a resident. That was when he remembered Will and turned to him with a grim face.

"I suggest you go to your own home Mr. Turner and change into something more appropriate for the trip." He said. Will looked down at himself and turned red with anger and embarrassment but he didn't say a word and went running away from the port. Norrington took this chance to take a look beyond the horizon, even if he could barely see anything from the thick curtain of heavy rain, and gripped the hilt of his sword so tight that his knuckles began to turn white.

Oh how he hated surprises.


	2. Hands of Fate

**AN:** Hey there! Glad I got at least one review. Thanks a lot to ILoveAnime89 for your unending support to the story so far! I really appreciate that. Now, I shall move on to the story before the rest of you readers decide to stop reading. Enjoy!

* * *

_**"Mom...dad...Carrie...I'm so sorry...but please, let me worry about myself first." - Vanessa Silvestre**_

**Hands of Fate**

Darkness was the only thing that filled the room. Dark curtains were drawn down and kept anyone from seeing what was outside the windows. No one could tell whether it was day or night inside the room. Not even a single light illuminated the room. But someone who has been in the dark long, or someone with extra-ordinary senses, would be able to take note of a large lump on the bed. It was a body; its chest moving up and down as it breathed slowly in a rhythmic beat. Mumbles could be heard from the form as it occasionally shifted from left to right. The young woman on the bed sat up with a soft groan. Short, spiky black hair stood out in all directions, giving her a messy, sleepy look. She looked around her in confusion and rubbed her eyes just to make sure that her eyes weren't playing tricks on her.

"Where...am I?" She mumbled sleepily. Her mind was still fogged up from just waking up, so she didn't remember or notice where she was and what happened to her. She got out of her bed and walked over to the curtains, drawing them open and letting a flood of bright light burst into the room. Blue eyes twinkled, shined and blinked at the sudden change of colors in the room. She closed them and waited a few more minutes so her eyes could adjust to the light. When she opened them again, she stared out of the window and saw the gray street below. People in jeans, shirts, and the like passed by casually and ignored everyone else around them. Cars drove by and sometimes made beeping sounds when someone decided to go jaywalking.

_So...am I really back?_

She jumped in surprise at the sudden ringing that broke the silence in the room. She turned around and found the black cordless phone lying on the bed. She walked towards it, picked it up, and hesitantly placed it to her ear. The voice of a woman spoke through the receiver and she blinked at the familiarity of it.

"Aunt Tiffany? Aunt Tiffany, is that you?" She asked. The other end of the line suddenly became quiet. Just when she was about to decide that their connection was cut off, she heard the loud cry of the woman she was speaking to.

"Oh my gosh! Vanessa! Is that really you? I can't believe it! You're back. Oh thank goodness you're still alive!" She cried. "We were all so worried about you, with the way you suddenly disappeared. Carrie could barely sleep at night just thinking of what had happened to you. And your parents! I shiver to think of what you had put your parents through with your antics. Your co-workers and publisher were just as worried as we were. You've got some explaining to do young lady. But I am still glad that you've come back to us safe and sound." The young woman named Vanessa winced and pulled the phone away from her ear at arm's length as the other woman chattered on. Even from that distance she could still hear the other woman speaking. "Honey! Honey! It's Vanessa! She's back at her own home! I'm talking to her right now."

"Really? That's great dear! Carrie must be so happy to have found her just in time."

"In time? What is he talking about? Aunt Tiffany?" Vanessa asked as she placed back the phone to her ear.

"Yes Carrie must be jumping up and down and running all around the room by now. Where is our daughter? I expected to hear some sort of noise over the phone." She said. Vanessa looked around her and found no sign of any form of life. She only saw the gold aztec coin her foster parents gave her, lying on the ground. She picked it up then went out of her room and scanned the living room, the kitchen, the guest room, and even the bathroom. She titled her head in confusion as she spoke to the other woman on the phone.

"She's not here. I can't find her anywhere in my apartment."

"Oh she must have been out shopping for food or getting a bit of fresh air. She has been staying in your home ever since you disappeared, taking care of your house for you when you return. Vanessa, really you shouldn't have run off like that all of a sudden. You made everyone worry so much about you. We begun to think of all the horrible possibilities that could have befallen you."

"I'm sorry auntie, something suddenly came up...something that needed my attention. I had to go alone and I had to go immediately so I had no chance of telling any of you. But auntie, what did uncle Danny meant about me arriving just in time?"

"Oh I see, so that's why. But really dear, you shouldn't have left without a word. You should have told Carrie or called someone to notify us or sent a message or something. She was staying at your place when it came up right? Really Vanessa, that was pretty irresponsible of you."

"Yes I know auntie and I said I'm sorry for it. But I really want to know what you meant by-"

"We should go over there right now and make a big celebration for your safe return. I know! We can all go out to eat at some fancy restaurant. Danny and I will treat you out to this really popular restaurant that's just a few blocks away from-"

"Aunt Tiffany!" Vanessa snapped impatiently. "I understand how glad you are that I'm back and alive but please! Tell me what uncle Danny meant when he said that it was a good thing I arrived just in time. In time for what auntie? Tell me!" She gritted her teeth and took deep breaths as she tried to control her temper. It wasn't her fault that she sounded like a pain in the ass that moment. She knew that it was wrong to vent all her frustration on the woman who would be her only source of assistance right then. "I'm sorry aunt Tiffany. But really, I need to know. What did uncle Danny mean by what he said?" She repeated. She could hear someone sigh on the other line then the sound of someone whispering.

"Vanessa?" The low voice of uncle Danny came into her hearing. "Vanessa it's Danny. I'm sorry about Tiffany. She's just excited about knowing you're there. Now about what I said earlier...I...I hate to be the one to break this to you but...Didn't you read the papers this morning?"

"No I didn't. What is going on? Did something happen?" She could sense the hesitation on the other line as she waited for a reply. It felt like days passed before she heard the voice of her uncle speak into the phone again. His voice sounded sad, regretful, mournful and froze her in her movements.

"Vanessa. Your parents. They...they were murdered yesterday."

* * *

She stood under the dark clouds, staring blindly at the two wooden crates aligned side by side. They were made from one of the finest quality of oakwood anyone could find. One was painted black, the other white. It was something she knew they would have been amused at. It clearly depicted their personality, their whole selves. Complete opposites, yet combined to balance each other and make a complete and whole embodiment of what love and family should be. Some part of her was glad that they had died together. It seemed a fitting end for the wonderful couple who have shed light and hope upon her little, broken self. Another part of her was sad. Sad that they had not died through natural means.

The funeral was held at the cemetery of course, the short grass swayed as a very strong and cold wind brushed past them. Vanessa could smell a storm coming; a little trick she picked up from her alter ego. At the thought of her, a smile came upon her lips. She had thought of nothing but that the whole day yesterday. She wondered if she would still meet Jack or Will or Elizabeth or even Norrington in her dreams. She mused about them, wondering if they were thinking about her or if they had already forgotten about her. Was Marine dead in the world of pirates? Did her existence in the lives of those characters vanish when she came back to her own world? She sighed then shook her head of those thoughts.

"You're wasting your time worrying about something that shouldn't be worried over." She muttered to herself, her smile growing larger as she repeated one of the last things the man had told her. She didn't look at the DVD of the first movie or watched it one more time. She didn't need to. Her memories of everything that happened in the movie was engraved into her mind, stuck there for as long as she lived. Their faces were clear to her, as if she had taken a picture of them and kept them within her mind.

Especially his.

"What's with that goofy smile on your face Vanessa?!" One of her co-workers cried, snapping her out of her thoughts. She looked at him and narrowed her eyes as he and the rest of the crew came walking up to her. They were all wearing black, just like she was. Others had come to the funeral, aside from her co-workers and her publisher. Relatives and friends of both her father and mother crowded around the surrounding area, speaking, crying, mourning, drinking, eating. Honestly Vanessa had been hesitant about inviting relatives. They weren't exactly in the best of terms with each other. Everyone in their family had disapproved of her parents taking in a foster child. But her parents ignored any sort of advice against it and went through with accepting Vanessa into their lives. The relatives weren't angry about it, but it didn't mean that they had accepted the fact either.

Vanessa had to force a smile on her face as all of those who came to the funeral walked up to her and paid their respects, talked to her, gave her advice and the like. They expected her to break down, fall on her knees to the ground and cry her heart out. They had even prepared boxes of tissues to her amusement. But to their surprise, Vanessa didn't not seem mournful or grieving at all. She just seemed sad at a loss. Some whispered about it, and some even gave her open glares. She ignored them all and went on through the ceremony with a stony face.

"Don't tell me you're happy that they're dead." Another piped in, in agreement to the other. Vanessa snapped her head towards the latter and narrowed her eyes at him.

"Of course I'm not happy! Why should I be happy about a death of someone I loved and cared about? What do you think I am? Heartless?" She asked him. The man backed away from her and held up his hands in defense.

"Hey, don't look at me! You were the one with that large smile on your face earlier. What were you thinking then?" He asked curiously. Vanessa's gaze softened and she turned to face the sky. It was definitely going to rain soon. The others surrounding her looked up as well, staring at the cloudy sky in confusion. They saw Vanessa smile again as she looked back at all of them.

"It's not that I'm happy they're gone. It's just that...well they've taught me not to bring myself down over something like this. They would want me to move on with my life and be happy. And if that's what they want, then that's what I'm going to do. In gratitude for everything they've done for me ever since they took me in that day." She explained to them. "I was thinking of a movie I watched. I think, maybe, I'm going to watch it again." They all looked at her in confusion.

"Huh? Watch it again? What for?"

"Oh it's something you guys won't understand." She told them teasingly. She looked around again, then stopped when something caught her attention. "Hey, the priest is calling me over. I think it's time to start the burial." She motioned for them to follow her as she walked ahead towards where all the other people began to crowd in. She caught up with the priest, and bowed politely as he smiled sympathetically at her.

"How are you my child?" He asked.

"I'm fine father...thank you for asking." She replied with a small smile. She glanced to her side, where the two coffins lay together, before turning back her attention to the man before her. "Could you please make it quick? I don't think I feel comfortable standing with them now..." The priest gave her a smile and patted her head lovingly like a father would have done to his child. As he did this, her eyes caught sight of a large and burly bald man who entered through the gates of the cemetery. He walked across the tombs and made his way towards them with an air of confidence, strength and arrogance. She immediately knew who he was, from his blue jacket, pinned with some shiny badges of excellence and recognition, down to the black belt wrapped around his blue pants where a gun hung casually in its holster. Once she saw him she quickly looked away and tried not to stand out from the crowd.

When Officer Ramsey first called her home to ask for Carrie, she had answered and had to go through trying to explain her disappearance to him. In the end, the officer said that she should go to the station to be asked some further questions. Vanessa didn't want to go, and used the reason of being at the funeral as an excuse. That was how the officer found himself standing inside the cemetery, walking towards a funeral. Vanessa didn't want to talk to the officer. She wasn't sure that the lie she used on Carrie's parents would work on them, and she didn't feel like thinking up of a strong and valid excuse for the man. But she knew that she would have to sooner or later. She had no choice in the matter.

Not only that, the sudden disappearance of Carrie as soon as she appeared posed a lot of questions on everyone's part. It seemed too much a coincidence for that to happen. Vanessa was very worried about her young friend, but if she can't think of something to save herself, that will be the least of her worries. Officer Ramsey walked towards a few of the relatives and spoke with them; most likely to ask for her whereabouts. She gave a small smile to the priest, excused herself from him, and walked farther away from the man. She gritted her teeth and clenched her fists in frustration.

_What the hell am I going to do about this?_

"Vanessa! Yooohoo, Vanessa dear. Over here!" A loud, high-pitched voice cried in the midst of all the whispering and talking, making Vanessa jump in surprise. She looked for the source of the voice and grimaced when she saw Carrie's parents, Tiffany and Danny Lockheart, walking towards her in their black ensemble. Unfortunately for her, Officer Ramsey heard it as well and he found Vanessa with a small grin on his face. Tiffany and Danny stopped in front of her with sympathetic smiles on their faces.

"We are truly sorry for your loss Vanessa. Your parents were very good people, who deserved better." Danny began. Vanessa gave a weary sigh and waved an arm at them.

"It's alright uncle. You don't have to do this. I'm tired of listening to the same thing over and over again anyway." She said. Danny gave a soft chuckle and patted her shoulder.

"You are, are you then? Well let us say one last thing before we end this discussion." He said.

"You know that no matter what happens, Danny and I will always be here to help you out in whatever problems happen in your life." Tiffany finished for him. "If you need some support or some company, you know where to find us. Although Carrie isn't here at the moment, I'm sure she'll be happy to help out too. But it is worrisome that she suddenly disappeared the day you came back. Are you sure you didn't see her or any note from her about her absence? Normally Carrie would let at least one person know that she'll be away."

"Perhaps, something very important and urgent had occurred that she did not have the time to notify anyone of her sudden departure." A low and rough voice spoke behind them. "It is the same thing that had occurred with you did it not Miss Silvestre?" Vanessa barely bit back a groan as she turned around and faced the large man with a forced smile on her face.

"Why, yes, isn't that a strange coincidence? Officer Ramsey I presume?" He gave a curt nod to Vanessa then turned his attention to Danny and Tiffany first.

"If you will please excuse us Mr. and Mrs. Lockheart, I must ask her some questions concerning her sudden disappearance and the disappearance of your own daughter." Tiffany placed a hand to her mouth and gasped in shock.

"Officer...you don't think Vanessa had anything to do with my darling Carrie's disappearance? The two of them are the best of friends! Vanessa would never do such a thing to her." She said defensively. Vanessa couldn't help but smile gratefully at Tiffany for trying to stand up for her. Danny sensed the seriousness in the request and grabbed his wife's arm a bit firmly.

"Now dear, let us go and see how the other relatives are doing and give these two some time to discuss whatever it is they need to talk about..." He gave a supporting, hopeful grin at Vanessa's direction before turning his attention to his chattering wife and walking away with her. Vanessa couldn't help but smile and chuckle as she watched the two grow smaller in her vision. A short cough made her sigh and turn her attention back to the officer. Before he could open his mouth and speak, she did so first.

"Look Officer, I know how important this is to everyone, but can you please give me the rest of the ceremony to myself before I start answering your questions? You did arrive at a very sensitive time..." She muttered in irritation. The burly man's lips thinned into a straight line as he stared at her intensely. Just when Vanessa feared that he was not going to agree to her terms, the officer smoothed out the wrinkles on his shirt and held up 5 fingers at her.

"5 minutes Miss Silvestre. I'll give you 5 minutes to finish up. I will be waiting at the gate." He answered with a gruff voice before walking away. Vanessa watched him go, and exhaled the breath she didn't realize she had held as she spoke with him. The pounding in her heart began to slow down as she stood there longer. Her hand came up to rub her face as she felt an imaginary headache attack her.

"Mom...dad...Carrie...I'm so sorry...but please, let me worry about myself first."

* * *

The loud, ear-splitting crack of thunder reached Vanessa's ears as she stood before the two lumps of soil in front of her. Her mind had been away from the cemetery throughout the whole burial ceremony; thinking of what to do about Officer Ramsey, who was waiting for her at the entrance. Her hand had moved on its own as she threw the first soil onto the top of the two coffins. She watched, without actually seeing, as others came and began to shovel dirt onto the coffins, burying them permanently from above ground. She listened, without actually hearing, as relatives and friends gathered around her and gave her words of consolace; patting her back, giving her hugs, telling her that she should feel free to call them when she needed to. Those offers were nothing, she knew. They were just words of politeness and courtesy; empty words that would be forgotten the next day, or even later that night, in their own warm and safe beds.

It was unfortunate that Carrie was not there to comfort her as well. She thought it ironic that the one person she needed the most in her time of sadness was not there, just like she had not been there for Carrie when she was the one who went through all the trouble, while she herself was out on the Black Pearl, having the time of her life. She wanted to hear her voice as she tried to cheer her up with movies, food, and the like. It would have been wonderful to relax, let go, and enjoy a small vacation with her friend while they both healed from the death of their loved ones. She wondered now where Carrie was, what she was doing, if she was safe and sound or if she was being held unwillingly by some madman or serial killer. Guilt raided her whole self as she thought of those things. Here she was, maybe not happy, but safe and sound while Carrie is somewhere out there probably scared and alone. She promised to herself that once she's freed from the clutches of the authorities, she would do everything in her power to find Carrie and get her back no matter what.

But she couldn't help but let her mind wander through her other thoughts. That was when her memories of Port Royal and her adventure with the cursed ship came back to her. She missed her other friend. The other person she would allow herself to let go all of the emotions tumbling and rumbling inside her. She had done it only twice, but those two times comforted her and made her feel that it was supposed to be that way. There was something in the way he held her, the way he comforted her, that made her feel so secure and protected in his arms. If felt like nothing could ever hurt her as long as she was with him. The fact that he admitted to doing the same thing she did only intensified her decision in trusting him with her emotions. Strange as it was, she was confident that Captain Jack Sparrow would never let her down; would never betray her or hurt her.

The thoughts soon had to be interrupted as the priest bid his goodbye to her. She gave a short and curt nod of acknowledgment as he blessed her and walked past her back to the entrance. As she stared at the tombs with her parent's name etched onto them, she realized something. It had just occurred to her then that she had thrown the first soil; symbolizing her acceptance of her foster parent's deaths and the fact that she was never going to see them again. The problem was, she didn't want to accept it. She looked up, and felt raindrops pelt onto her face gently. It was soft and slow at first, then just as suddenly, the rain began to pour down on her hard. She blinked as the rain abruptly stopped and looked to her side to see Carrie's father, her uncle Danny, holding an umbrella above her.

"We should all go back home now, where there's a roof to protect us from the rain and where we can all get some warmth and comfort." He said gently. Vanessa smiled at him and nodded.

"I will...just after I attend to some of the important things I've been putting off for a while." Danny nodded to her approvingly then turned to his wife who was holding another umbrella and was standing a few feet away from them. She was waving excitedly, most likely calling for her husband. The two looked at each other and chuckled together. Then after a while, Danny looked at her with a serious expression on his face.

"Be careful alright Vanessa? This strange occurrence isn't good for any of us. You know that we're not suspicious of you, but please don't do anything to give them more reason to suspect you." He muttered. Vanessa gave a weary sigh and nodded to him with a small, grateful smile on her face. She knew she could count on her aunt and uncle to help her out of this mess, but lord only knows how much they could in their position.

"I will uncle Danny, I promise. Aunt Tiffany looks eager to go. Maybe you should go to her now. It's alright, I don't mind being left here. I want to be left alone for a few more minutes." She told him with a continuous flow; never giving him the chance to reply or contradict her decision. Danny sighed as well, knowing he couldn't convince Vanessa otherwise, then nodded to her, handing her the handle of the umbrella.

"If you say so, I'll go then. Here, you can have the umbrella. No, it's alright, I'll go over to my wife and share the other one with her. No need to thank me, just return it later." He said in imitation to her previous attack.

Vanessa couldn't help but laugh as she took the umbrella and kissed Danny on the cheek gratefully. She watched him smile and wave at her before walking off towards his wife and speaking to her quietly as they walked together under the umbrella. A smile came upon her lips as she watched their forms slowly disappear and become obscured in the pouring rain. It was a beautiful picture of two lovers, a wonderful couple, both happy and content with each other, sharing one umbrella as they walked together under the rain in peace. Once they were gone, she noticed that she was standing before the tombs alone. Everyone else had left, now that the ceremony and all the courtesies are over. She was glad that they were gone. They wouldn't have understood what she was about to do next.

The umbrella dropped to her side, the rain falling onto her felt wonderful on her skin. She closed her eyes, looked up at the sky and simply reveled in the peaceful, wonderful feeling. What no one saw, whether there were people standing about or not, were the tears that fell along with the raindrops on her face. They mixed together and fell to the ground in endless drops, splashing little of the water onto her black, high-heeled shoes. She released everything she'd kept held inside of her ever since she heard of her foster parent's death. All the grief and depression that she had; all poured out in one single moment. An uncontrollable sob escaped her lips and every muscle in her body tensed as she silently cursed the hands of fate.

Her hands automatically reached for the gold aztec coin that hung around her neck through a nylon chord. She gripped it firmly, her hold on it so tight that her knuckles turned white. It was the only, remaining thing she had of her parents. Sure she could still go to their old home and live there; keep their presence as alive as she could with everything they owned. But it wasn't the same. They were just furnitures and some other junk that had lost their meaning when her parents were killed. Even the car would disappear over time, either sold, stolen, or destroyed. The coin was different. It was their present to her. It was hers, with the soul and the love of her parents inserted into it. She thought that if she kept it, her parents would be there with her, standing by her side and watching her every move. She knew that she would never let it go now. Not when it was the only thing keeping her from totally breaking down and sulking in grief.

To her sudden displeasure, a strong wave of water came down upon her and almost drowned her as she spluttered and coughed out water that she had accidentally swallowed from her shock. Afterwards she realized with even greater shock that she was swimming while the raging storm went on. She had no idea how it happened, and didn't have time to think it through as something invisible grabbed her ankle and dragged her deeper into the depths of the water. It reminded her of the time she came to Port Royal the first time and wondered if she was going to go there once more. She held her throat, and struggled to keep whatever air she had managed to take in for as long as she could. She struggled with whatever was dragging her down in vain and after a while was about to give up when the force of the wave threw her to some shore. She gasped and took deep ragged breaths, basking in the feel of fresh air flowing through her lungs. Her vision swirled before her and it took great strength to crawl closer to land and away from the wave before she fell to the ground and fell unconscious right there.

* * *

One month has passed, she knew. And within that month she had done nothing but hide from the Royal Navy and anyone else who might have recognized her. Vanessa had been surprised to find herself wearing her black dress and her black high-heeled shoes when she woke up a few hours later after she had been washed onto shore. She wondered what happened and why it happened. From her inquiries, after stealing and wearing just a simple, very long, black coat to cover herself and keep people from discovering her modern made dress, she learned that she had only been gone a day after Jack Sparrow escaped his hanging. She had also learned, from all the asking, that Will and Elizabeth were going to get married in a few months. She was glad for the happy couple, but wondered if the events in Dead Man's Chest would follow through in this time and world.

She was tempted to go look for Elizabeth in the Governor's mansion, but knew that she couldn't do that and not risk herself. She didn't want to bother Elizabeth as well, knowing it would have been hell for her if she agreed to help Vanessa hide. Not only that, her reputation as a high class, well respected woman would be destroyed if word got out that she tried to help a pirate escape the gallows from Commodore and his men...again. Aside from that, since only Jack and Elizabeth knew of her true story, if she appeared now, it would only bring in a lot of questions from other people whom she didn't want to explain herself to at the moment.

That was why she spent 30 days jumping from one inn to another and managing to escape the owner's clutches without paying, sometimes sleeping near the alleyways or inside stableyards on top of a stack of hay in desperation. She hated it, but it was either that or be sent to prison to her death. On that certain day, she simply lounged around the daily, crowded market, stealing food and some money if she felt like it. She was planning on sleeping in one of the stables again that night. She had gone through all of the available inns in Port Royal and knew that if she stepped into one of them again, she was going to get it.

She could go to the docks, steal a passage on a ship and make her way to Tortuga, where her frequent hangout was, but she didn't feel like hiding for months in a cramped place wearing nothing but a dress and killer high-heel shoes. She would pay someone to take her there, but she could only steal enough to survive for only one day. She wasn't expecting Jack Sparrow to arrive on the shores of Port Royal. That was being too idealistic. Lastly, the most important reason why she didn't leave Port Royal, was because something was tugging at the back of her mind. She couldn't explain it, but she had a feeling that she was supposed to stay there for now. There had been times when she had these kinds of feelings, and from her experience, it was better to follow them and see what happens.

She sat on a bench, the dark coat wrapped firmly around her whole self, now with a matching hat to place on her head. With her present outfit, she could be seen as a small man and thus, hiding her real identity from those who shouldn't know of it. She pulled the rim of the hat down to keep anyone from seeing her face as she slouched and observed the people who passed by diligently. The guards of the Royal Navy roamed around town from time to time, and Vanessa couldn't help but smile smugly at their ignorance. Her smile grew widest whenever she saw Commodore Norrington walking about town with that wig of his and with the arrogant stride in his steps. Elizabeth and Will walked together with him from time to time, but it was Norrington whom she frequently saw. Most of the time he would be in his office, and she would be tempted to throw something at his window just to catch his attention. The stiff, methodical man amused her greatly.

A woman dressed in an elegant white, pearl embroidered dress walked towards Norrington's office, together with an equally well dressed man who tied his hair below the nape of his neck. She smiled under her hat as she watched them enter the large building. They seemed to be headed for some party or something, judging from the way they presented themselves. A few minutes later, they left the building together with Commodore Norrington. Vanessa watched them walk away while they spoke with each other. And all of a sudden, a spur of the moment, Vanessa grabbed a small pebble on the ground in front of her and followed the three people from behind. She wanted to know whether she could get away with hitting the Commodore, as crazy and illogical as that seemed.

She wove her way through the busy crowd, brushed past vendors screaming their wares and dirty, ragged children chasing each other around, while keeping up with the three the whole time. She heaved a sigh of relief as they began to walk away from the chaos and towards a quieter, less crowded area. The only problem was, with less places to hide in, there would be a bigger chance of the Commodore finding her out. She firmed her grip on the pebble in her hand with a determined look on her face. Despite the obstacles and the risks she was going to take, she still wanted to hit Norrington. She ran past them through the confusing alleyways and jumped into a pile of boxes at the side of a house, before the three. As they passed by her, she aimed the pebble at Norrington and threw it at him as hard as she could.

"Ouch! What on earth was that?" Will cried as he rubbed the spot where the small rock connected to his head. Vanessa widened her eyes and looked at her hands. She was clearly aiming for Norrington. She couldn't understand why it had hit the blacksmith instead. There were no obstacles; no factors that could have made the rock lose its momentum towards its supposed target. As Marine, her accuracy in hitting targets was incredible. Her precision was precise and exact. It should have hit its target without fail. Vanessa saw that Will was looking around for the one responsible and immediately ducked behind the crates. She heard Will shouting and Norrington's whistle as footsteps began running towards her direction. She cursed inwardly and lied down on her stomach as she crawled away from the boxes as quickly and quietly as she could. She was still crawling when she heard the Commodore's curt and loud demand.

"Do not move any further." Vanessa froze in panic and was beginning to think up of ideas on how to escape her predicament when the noise grew softer in her ears. She blinked in confusion and risked lifting her head up to see what was happening. What she saw confused her even more. There was fighting at the stone fortress; the place where she had jumped from and met Jack Sparrow as a result. Elizabeth had rushed towards a young woman while Will and Norrington were trying to capture the other men. The three thugs froze just as she did at Norrington's voice and looked at him in fear. Vanessa heard the sound of many pairs of footsteps coming her way and decided that she wasn't going to risk herself any longer. She walked away as casually as she could and passed by the dozen uniformed guards, who rushed towards the Commodore, without any problems. Her legs and knees were shaking as she walked, and her hands itched to wring her clothes in an attempt to calm her nerves. She had to look and act natural or she will be discovered.

She didn't dare turn her head around in case one of the soldiers would notice her and become suspicious of her. She was being a bit paranoid, but it was better to be very cautious than to be caught off-guard. Her steps were quick and brisk as she made her way back to the crowded market. She didn't realize how grateful she was as she stood beside a small food stall, trying to take deep, calming breaths. If Will's attention had not been caught by whatever it is at the stone fortress, she would have been discovered. She thanked whoever was listening for her strange stroke of luck.

Once she had recovered from the sudden rush of adrenaline, she began to walk aimlessly about the market. She swore to herself that she was never going to do such a ridiculous and careless thing like that. Whatever possessed her to throw a rock at Norrington was gone, and now she began to think back on her previous actions and scold herself mentally. She walked, and casually, skillfully snatched an apple from a fruit stand without letting the owner realize it. She bit into it and chewed thoughtfully.

"Wonder who that woman was..." She murmured to hereself. She didn't get a good glimpse of the young woman, but she did see blond hair. The only thing she saw in the woman in fact, with Elizabeth hanging all over her like a worried mother hen. She looked up at the sky and noted the reddish clouds as the sun slowly began to set in the west. There were less people roaming about as well; most probably returning to their homes to sit before a warm fire with delicious food. She had better find a place to sleep in before it gets dark. Casually throwing the core of the apple to the side, she began walking through the dirty roads with a bit more purpose.


	3. An Impressive Impostor

**AN: **As usual, I don't own POTC. I own Vanessa, Carrie and other original characters that you've never heard of yet. I also own this plot so no taking. Read, review and enjoy!

* * *

_**"From the looks the two of you are giving me, you must have thought I was already dead or something. Guess what? I'm back." - Sharpshooter Marine**_

**Chapter 3 - An Impressive Impostor**

The loud raucous noise in the tavern, compared to the loud, heavily raining storm outside, was relaxing to her ears as she sat down at a dark corner of the room. Vanessa had missed her time as Sharpshooter Marine, the most fearsome and fearless female pirate in the whole of the Caribbean sea, and usually found herself remembering it most whenever she was at the docks, on a ship or at a tavern like the one she was in presently. Men from previous nights came to her and offered to play cards with her again but she had refused them that night, saying that she wasn't in the mood to play. The events that occurred earlier that day were bothering her now. She couldn't understand what was happening to her or why it was happening to her; she just knew that it was.

And as if answering her prayers for revelation, a very soaked, dirty, suspicious looking man entered the tavern and looked about for a place to sit at. As fate would have it, he sat down on a table right beside Vanessa's. Other men began to group around him and spoke with him in a friendly gesture. The man was happy to let them join him and engross himself in a game of cards and a couple of mugs of rum. As they played, they spoke of their adventures, wondrous tales and myths that they claimed they have gone to. Vanessa listened to them with half-an ear as she struggled to stay awake.

"Aye an' all of a sudden our captn' was tossed overboard and eaten whole by a large sea snake!" The new man explained, throwing his arms wide to emphasize the size. The others around the table snorted and scoffed at the man as they held their cards. "Tis' true I tell ye! It was as large as any ship that ever set sail in these waters. Then this lass, a very fierce and cruel lass, appeared standin' on top of said snake, jumped onto the deck of our ship, and announced that she was to captain it."

"Well I saw with me very own eyes, the Kraken that was said to roam about the coasts near Nassau Port swimmin' around 'ere and swallowed a ship whole. An' guess what? It came up to me an' told me that I could own it." One of the men said in sarcasm as he threw a few coins onto the pile at the center of the table. The one beside the former considered his cards then took a card from the deck while chuckling along with the other cardholders at the light mockery in the man's voice.

"Oh she mentioned that she owned that creature as well in fact, but said the creature was busy enjoyin' itself inside some underwater cave o' sumthin'. So I won't be believin' yer tale." The man told him grimly. "I tell ye, ye won't believe it 'till ye've seen it for yourselves. The lass is most probably the most frightenin' thing ye've ever seen."

"Who the bloody 'ell is this lass man? She must be daft to claim that she owns two ferocious creatures like the Kraken an' a sea snake."

"Ye haven't heard then? Tis' Sharpshooter Marine who owns them creatures." The man whispered to them. All of the heads on the table snapped to the side as they heard a loud, hoarse and unnatural cough. Vanessa looked up at them and gave them the most intense stare she could muster up in such short notice.

"Waddaya think yer lookin' at ye scallywags?" She cried in a low and rough voice. Whether they were intimidated or not, the men on the table turned their attentions back to the man speaking, who was now whispering softer to the men surrounding him. Vanessa gave a soft sigh of relief at first, then cursed to herself for being so loud and almost blowing off her cover. Fortunately for Vanessa, the man who was speaking was loud enough for her to hear and understand. The alcohol he's consumed must have gotten to his head then.

"As I was sayin', ye all probably know how she looks like. Short spiky black hair, blue eyes, blue bandanna around her neck an' three ear clips on her left ear. The lass has it all an' her famous skill is n'credible. I doubt anyone can aim as good as she does." Vanessa looked down at her hands again, as if the answers to her question would simply shoot out of them like magic. **_She_** was supposed to be Sharpshooter Marine. _**She**_ was supposed to have the great skills in accuracy and precision. If the man was to be believed, then there's someone out there who was impersonating her. Very impressively, she should add. Like the man said, no one could throw a target in perfect accuracy as good as she did. She gripped the edge of the table tightly, barely noticing the knuckles turning white because of it.

"So what are ye doin' in this town?" One of them asked. Vanessa's ears pricked at the question and she unconsciously leaned forward on her chair to try and listen. "Port Royal's not a likely place to stay in for our likes after all." The man placed his hands behind his back as he watched the cards being dealt with again for another round. He grinned mischievously at all of them before he answered.

"I 'ave some business to attend to 'ere. The capt'n's orders. Better get up now an' get to it though. She'll skin me an' feed it to the dogs if I don't come back with what she wants." He muttered a bit disappointedly as he stood up from his chair. The other men around the table looked up at him and bade him goodbye as they watched him retreat from the warmth and comfort of the tavern before going back to their card game. Vanessa's eyes narrowed as they followed the man's form leave and turn to the left. Her fingers tapped lightly on the table, her unreadable, pondering gaze at nothing in particular.

"What does Sharpshooter Marine want...?" She mumbled to herself. Standing up from her own chair, she bade her small group of friends goodbye and walked out into the cold rainy night. She was immediately drenched with rain from top to bottom as soon as she stepped out of the warm tavern, but she could care less about that. She kept her hands in the coat pockets as she trudged along the dark and muddy road, trying to estimate where the other man had gone to. She caught a flash of the clothes that the man was wearing around a corner of the alleyway beside them and quickly but quietly made her way towards that same direction. As she briskly walked, she steadied her hand inside the coat, where she held a small knife she had stolen before tightly in her hand. Somehow despite wearing the black high heeled shoes, she was still capable of walking in silence. But that didn't mean she was going to let her guard down for one second.

She noticed that they were headed for the homes of the higher classed men and women, as the number of people who were still awake dwindled down to just her and the man before her. Noises that usually came out of taverns and some of the brothels slowly faded away the farther they went, until nothing but her breathing, her footsteps and his own footsteps could be heard. Vanessa made her way through the empty roads and past the dark windows of the houses they passed by, following every step the man in front of her made. She began to ponder on the things the man in front of her was ordered to do. There were too many possibilities for her to strike on the right one though and she was still recovering from her shock pertaining to the strange news she heard back at the tavern.

Her right foot stopped in mid-air as she realized the man in front of her stop walking. She cursed silently to herself and sprang to the side behind a bush just in time as the man looked behind him cautiously. The man had heard the sound, but was too impatient to take too much notice of it. Vanessa could not help but heave a sigh of relief as the man went on with his walk without looking back. She peered over the top of the bush, brushing against the straying branches that blocked her view and widened her eyes as the man entered into a very familiar looking mansion. Most of the lights were off, but there was a couple of rooms on the second floor that were still bristling with life. She assumed these were bedrooms. She wanted to go there and stop the man from getting away with what he's doing, but she knew that going there blindly would get her nowhere. She decided to wait and find out first what the man was doing.

Waiting wasn't that difficult to do, especially since it only took the man a few minutes before he went back out of the house. Vanessa widened her eyes when the man came out dragging a woman with him with another hanging limp over his shoulder. She pushed herself back down to keep them from spotting her, and listened as two pairs of footsteps pounding on the puddles on the ground moved past her and began to fade away. Once she was sure that it was far enough, Vanessa stood up from where she hid and looked at the direction they went. She couldn't see them anymore, and she could barely manage to hear their footsteps amidst the sound of the rain. But there was only one place where the man could have gone to after completing his so called mission, and she knew a way to it without bumping into the man and his hostages. She ran at a different direction and began to weave her way through the empty, confusing alleyways behind the houses of Port Royal, ignoring the pelting rain hitting her face. As she ran, she went over her questions and thoughts in her mind.

_What does he plan to do with Elizabeth and that other woman? What does Sharpshooter Marine want with them?_

Vanessa managed to arrive at the port just in time as the man she was following came up from behind. She flattened herself against the cold wall and watched from the corner of her eye as the man walked towards one of the rowboats tied up to a post. He made the other woman get into it, while unceremoniously dropping Elizabeth right after. He stood up and began to untie the ropes that led to the boat. Vanessa took this as her chance to make her own move and sneaked her way towards the man. She barely breathed as she slowly moved forward, one silent and careful step at a time. If she was too hasty, she might slip under the wet wooden planks and alert him of her presence. Her hand subconsciously slid to the knife hiding inside her coat and gripped the hilt firmly. Her muscles grew tense as she prepared herself to fight with the man when it came to that. She gritted her teeth and furrowed her brows as she focused on the man and started to pull back a fist...

* * *

The first thing that Elizabeth noticed as she opened her eyes were the long steel bars caging her like an animal. It wasn't that dark inside the cells since there were windows set at regular intervals which splashed some light into the room. She could see the interior of the cell she was in and after taking note of the slow and gentle sway of the floorboards and the strong smell of the salty waters, she realized that she was on a ship. Something shifted beside her, and she looked to the side to find Carrie sleeping on the ground uncomfortably. That was when she remembered what had happened the night before, when a man suddenly barged into their room and took her captive. She couldn't remember most of what had happened after that, but Carrie probably did. She leaned closer to her and began to nudge her gently. 

"Carrie...Carrie wake up." She whispered. The smaller blond haired girl gave a soft grumble in discomfort as she turned slightly to one side. Opening one eye, she peered up at Elizabeth and furrowed her brows in confusion. She was about to ask Elizabeth what was wrong and what had happened when she remembered the dirty bastard who suddenly came into the room and grabbed the two of them out of the house by force. She immediately sat up from the ground and looked at the other woman wildly.

"Where is he? Where are we? What's happening?" She asked. Elizabeth held her shoulders and tried to calm her down before she explained their situation to her; or what she knew of it. She looked at Carrie in concern, as the other girl bit her lip to keep from going into mad hysterics.

"Calm down Carrie, I'll try and tell you as much as I could. One, we are in the brigs of a ship. And two, the man who took us here is gone, as you can see from the empty room. I just woke up, so that's about as much as I know. Tell me first Carrie, what happened as the man took us away from my home?" She asked. Carrie held her hands together in a tight grip and took a deep breath as if she sensed that she was going to have a long story to tell.

"Well it was mostly walking under the heavy rain. The man took us to the port and towards a rowboat he probably decided to steal from someone. All of a sudden this stranger appears and starts attacking the man who kidnapped us. He probably saw us with the man, sensed something was wrong, and tried to save us. They were really fighting, throwing punches here and there, swinging blades until the two of them managed to release their holds on them. I heard a very loud shout and saw a vague figure of someone who was headed towards us and the two men, but I guess I fainted at that moment because the next thing I know, I'm here waking up beside you. Guess the man failed to rescue us and the man who was kidnapping us managed to get into the bow and take us here onto this ship." She explained as she looked worriedly at Elizabeth and held her hands, seeking comfort.

"What are they planning to do with us Liz? I'm so scared..." Elizabeth gave her a small smile and hugged her tight. She was just as afraid as Carrie was but she knew better on what she was supposed to do, since she had been kidnapped by pirates before. She assumed they were pirates, since they were on a ship. She could try declaring parley again, but that won't take her and Carrie to safety. They don't have anything to bargain with for one and God only knows how much help that would give her. Even so, she had the better experience, and she was the one Carrie depended on. She had to stay strong for the two of them or else they'll both go mad with fear.

"It's alright, you don't have to be so worried. I'm sure Will will find a way to find us and save us from whatever it is these men plan on doing to us. While we're here under their grasps, I want you to stay calm and help me think of a possible way to escape. In the meantime, have faith and never give up." She told her. Carrie stared at her for a few seconds before nodding to her, the fear that was clearly etched onto her face slowly disappearing. Now she looked at Elizabeth with a new light in her eyes.

"I'm sorry about that, I must have been a fool to act so desperate and weak when I should be helping you. Thank you for making me realize my mistake." She told her with a smile. "You know, you remind me a lot of my friend back in my own world. She used to give me these similar kinds of pep talks too. They always cheered me up and made me move on with whatever it is I'm facing." Elizabeth listened interestedly and tilted her head curiously.

"Oh? She must be a very good friend to you then. Strange as it seems, I didn't have any sort of friends like that. Most of the women I am acquainted with were very, prim and proper, and...well they're just not the type who would love to go on adventures the way I sometimes feel. They're all very conservative in terms of relationships, and only spoke when it concerns gossip or rumors. It wasn't until recently that I found lots of truly good friends. What is your friend like Carrie?" She asked her.

"Well..." Carrie began, wondering how she was going to start her explanations. "Vanessa is a great person to be with. She's strong-headed, very athletic, tough. She loves doing any sort of physical activity and is good at it too. She's also kind, caring, compassionate, understanding, and...well she's my best friend. I tell her everything and somehow she makes things seem better whenever she comforts me. I don't know what I would do if she wasn't around. In fact, I had no idea what I was doing when she disappeared all of a sudden."

"What happened to her?"

"I don't know...we came back from a...performance. She went to the bathroom to take a bath while I stayed at her room and made myself at home. A few hours later I noticed that it was taking her a very long time so I tried to see what she was doing. When I opened the door, she was gone. There was water on the tub, so it meant that she had been taking a bath. But she just suddenly disappeared. As if she winked out of existence. It was strange, but I decided that Vanessa must have just felt like leaving and getting a break or something. But I heard nothing of her for five days so I grew worried. I called her parents and they decided to come and stay with me." As she continued with her story small tears began to fall down her eyes. "The next day an officer called me and told me that her parents were robbed and killed." Elizabeth couldn't help but gasp in horror.

"I'm so sorry to hear that Carrie..." The young woman wiped the tears from her eyes and stopped herself from crying further, but her face revealed that she was still upset about it. "What about your friend Vanessa? Does she..."

"I don't think she knows. If she did, she would have come back and asked for an explanation or something like that. Vanessa would never abandon her parents. She loves them as much as she would love her real, biological ones. They were technically her real parents since they're the only ones she's had. She just can't simply ignore the news of their deaths and move on with her life without giving them a proper goodbye or a burial or...or...something. Vanessa would never do that to them after everything they've done for her. It's just not like Vanessa!" She cried, not knowing how else to explain the jumble of confused ideas in her head. Elizabeth listened as much as she could, but stopped even before Carrie got halfway through her speech. She looked at the new friend in slight confusion.

"You mean your friend was adopted?" Carrie looked at her but didn't notice her expression as she nodded to her absently.

"That's right. Her real father and mother weren't with her. She's been taken to a foster home where she could have at least a couple who would care for her like real parents would."

"My friend...the one I mentioned who had been from another world...also had foster parents." Elizabeth told her. Slowly ideas started going through Elizabeth's head and she looked at the other woman excitedly. "Carrie, does the name Marine or Sharpshooter Marine sound familiar to you? What does your friend look like?" She asked her. Carrie blinked at Elizabeth and shook her head.

"No, it doesn't sound familiar. I've never heard of a name like that before." She slowly scratched her head as she continued to look at Elizabeth. She didn't understand what was going on yet, but hopefully Elizabeth would let her know if she's figured out something very important. "Vanessa is about your height, with short spiky black hair and blue eyes. She's thin but athletic so she's pretty strong." As she explained her friend's appearance, she heard the sound of footsteps coming down from above. She looked up from Elizabeth and watched as someone began going down the stairs.

"That's very strange...the description of your friend sounds exactly like..." Elizabeth's words died down as she turned her gaze at the person who had stopped at the very end and observed them quietly. She widened her eyes and stared dumbly as the person walked closer to them and stood right before the steel bars. Carrie was staring at the person as well, with her mouth hanging open wide in shock. No one spoke immediately, each gazing at the other in silence. It was only when the third person chuckled that both women inside the brig were brought back from their thoughts. But even so, the two were still staring at the other person on the other side of the bars incredulously.

"From the looks the two of you are giving me, you must have thought I was already dead or something." That earned them another hearty chuckle from said person. Ocean blue eyes twinkled as they gazed at the two prisoners with amusement. "Guess what? I'm back."

* * *

Will, dressed in more fitting clothes for a rough journey, leaned over the railings and stared silently at the sun that was rising over the horizon. A soft sea breeze brushed past him and kissed his face gently, giving him a sense of calm despite the purpose of his little voyage. One hour had passed since they left Port Royal and yet it seemed to Will as if he had never left the deck of a ship in his whole life. The pirate blood in him rejoiced at the adventure, at the fact that they were on board a ship setting sail. He closed his eyes and reveled in the wonderful feeling of being free; of being a man of the sea. His sense of peace and contentment disappeared though, as soon as he heard the footsteps of another man walking towards him. Will didn't bother looking to the side to see who it was, as the other man placed his arms on the railings and stared off at the same sunrise Will was gazing at. There was only one person on that ship who was going to speak with him. 

"Do you think we'll catch up with them?" He asked the newcomer. "We don't even know their location, let alone their destination." Norrington turned to face Will with a bit of irritation.

"I shall forgive you for your ignorance this time, and I shall be happy to enlighten you as to why I am confident that catching up with these vagabonds is no problem at all. This ship we are sailing on is the newest, fastest ship of His Majesty's. Made after the late Interceptor which, if you clearly remembered, was stolen and destroyed by pirates." At this he turned an accusing eye on Will who simply smirked in amusement. "Its speed is less than that of the renowned Black Pearl though, I must admit. But the Accelerator shall no doubt, catch up with the pirate ship especially since it has not left the port long."

"I see..." Will muttered as he went back to staring at the water as they lapped against the hull in a slow, rhythmic beat. Then something that he had pushed in the back of his head came back up again. He turned to Norrington first, then to the stairs leading below deck, where the prison cells were. "What of the man you brought along this trip? The one who was spotted close to the boat that was stolen. What has become of him?" He asked. Norrington grimaced as he remembered the man as well. He had been too busy with preparations for sailing and the like that he had forgotten about their captive.

"We did not have the chance to question him immediately while we were still busy setting sail. Let us go to him now while there is still a bit of time left before we catch up with the pirates." He answered. "We might find out information about Sharpshooter Marine to use against her." Will gave a curt nod and followed Norrington as they made their way down the steps into the brig. When the two men arrived in the prison cells, they saw the man being held in his soggy coat, sitting on his knees and leaning against the wooden wall with his hat covering the front of his face. He made no move or sign that he was awake as the Commodore ordered one of his guards to unlock the door. But when Norrington was about to reach towards his hat, the man swatted the hand away with a sudden burst of energy that surprised everyone in the room. Norrington took a step back warily before recomposing himself and glaring down at the man who crossed his arms in a relaxing position.

"Identify yourself and answer my questions. What you say shall determine your fate on the ship so I suggest you speak honestly or suffer the consequences." Norrington warned in a very cold tone. The man's head moved slightly though not enough for anyone to see his face. And in a very hoarse and low voice he answered.

"I see that you've moved me while I was still unconscious. And from what I've learned from that very rude guard over there, I'm on a ship headed to god knows where." The guard who was standing outside of the cell stiffened and glared angrily at the man. The prisoner gave a soft sigh before he turned to face Norrington. "My name is John Knightley and I'm just a simple fisherman in Port Royal. There was a man who was dragging a woman and carrying another onto one of the boats of one of my good friends. I figured that the thug was up to no good and so I tried to help the two lassies out by fighting their kidnapper. Well as you can see...I failed. Guess the man was stronger than I thought." He explained, scratching the back of his head while chuckling softly. Then he pointed a finger at Norrington. "Say, aren't you the Commodore? Is it true that ye let the scoundrel Jack Sparrow escape from his hanging?" Norrington ignored the man's question and threw one of his own back.

"Did you see the face of your assailant?"

"Not really...it was dark and there was barely any light on the port. I was about to go home after checking on my own boats when I spotted their forms headed towards my friend's boat. I was just there by happenstance and decided to be a good citizen to my town."

"Do you have any idea where they're headed to?"

"I was knocked unconscious. I wouldn't know even if he did mention it. And you wouldn't think anyone would simply tell a complete stranger who's attacking him, where he's going would you? There, I answered your questions. Now can I please get out of this cell? It's really uncomfortable in here." He complained. Norrington stared at John for a long while, considering the man's words. Will looked expectantly and anxiously at Norrington, wondering what the Commodore was thinking of based on the little that they've learned. John on the other hand didn't move a muscle and patiently, confidently waited for Norrington to release him from the brig. After a few minutes, Norrington turned around and began walking out of the prison cell.

"Keep an eye on him at all times. I don't want to find out about his sudden disappearance is that clear?" The guard standing outside nodded to him in reply. "And make sure he gets enough food and water. He might be a prisoner but there's a possibility that he truly is who he claims to be." John stiffened and with sudden speed he crawled towards the door just as it closed in front of his face with a loud clank. The guard who closed it grinned with victory at the man's defeat, glad to see the man get what he deserved. But John completely ignored him as he held the steel bars in his hands and growled under his breath.

"What the hell is the meaning of this Commodore? Let me out!" He cried. "I answered your stupid questions. Why are you still keeping me here?" Norrington stopped and simply looked over his shoulder for a brief second before walking away once more. John gritted his teeth and his knuckles began to turn white as he held the bars tightly in his hands. As Will followed the other man up the deck, he could hear the loud growling curses and empty threats coming from the imprisoned man echoing throughout the whole ship. No one paid any mind to it, and the young blacksmith was smart enough not to bother Norrington about it.

"Last time I decided to trust someone I ended up almost dying while trying to defend myself from cursed pirates. I won't take any more chances." Norrington said, as if reading Will's mind. Will didn't know what else to say after that and so let Norrington make his way to the helm. Once he was behind the wheel he took a looking glass from his right hand man and peered through it intently.

"Now...show yourselves pirates." He muttered with intense passion. He was going to capture all of the pirates in the world and send them all to the gallows if it was the last thing he'll ever do. Not a single one would be spared. Not one.

* * *

While Norrington and the other Royal Navy Guards went about the ship doing chores and the like, Will spent his time sharpening the soldier's swords and knives at the galley. He sat on one table, sharpening one sword in his hand while he set two tables for swords that weren't sharpened and ones that were. He inspected his recent work, moving a thumb across the sharp edge, and nodded in satisfaction when he decided that it was sharp enough. He placed it gently on the table filled with similar swords and moved to the other table to pick another unsharpened sword. He adjusted the rock he was using on his hand and began to sharpen the newest sword he'd picked. The sound of rock scraping on metal steel was as relaxing to him as the sound of the waves crashing onto the hull of the ship. He gave a soft chuckle at the thought. Was it possible for blacksmith and seaman to go together? 

Before he could answer his own thoughts or make more sense of them, he heard the sound of one of the guards giving a loud alarming shout. He carefully put down the sword he was sharpening at that moment and began walking on the deck to find out what was happening. Guards rushed across the whole deck in all directions while Norrington shouted commands to and fro. Will walked up towards the helm and stood beside Norrington in question.

"What is happening Commodore?" He asked. Norrington turned to look at Will as he waved a hand to a guard to give permission to grab their swords and rifles. He then handed Will his looking glass and guided him towards a direction ahead of them.

"We have caught up with the pirate ship." He answered as Will took in sight the small form of a ship growing slightly bigger by the minute. He would not have thought it a pirate ship if it wasn't for the black sails of the Jolly Roger fluttering along the sea breeze and displaying its symbol to anyone on sea. "It will be a few more hours before we can ride side by side so use that time to prepare yourself Turner." He added before shouting another order at a guard who was running and trying to fasten his belt, with the sword swinging wildly from side to side, around his waist. He stopped to give a salute to Norrington before running off once more to do as he was told. Will let down the looking glass from his eye and returned it to Norrington.

"I'll be down the galley handing out whatever swords remained that your guards forgot to take." Will told him as he began to go down the steps. Norrington gave no sign that he had heard but Will knew that the Commodore would have heard him at such a short distance. As Will walked down into the darker part of the ship, he wondered what had happened to his female pirate friend and why she was kidnapping Elizabeth and the other woman. From what he'd seen of Sharpshooter Marine, she was one of the 'best' pirates he'd ever met, aside from Jack Sparrow that is. Marine was friendly, good-hearted, kind, and considerate of others. If he had not seen Marine kill men with her weapons and steal her share of treasures with his own eyes, he would have never believed it from the young black haired woman.

Most of the guards he passed by barely noticed him, only stopping for a minute or two to ask where their swords were. He ended up arriving at the galley with nothing at all on the table where he had worked. He decided then to start preparing himself and briskly made his way to where he kept his weapons. For a brief moment, he hoped that the Royal Navy had mistaken the person for another female pirate. There were female pirates in existence after all; Marine and Anamaria were living proofs of that. Fighting a pirate whom he knew was supposedly a good person might be a bit difficult for him.

Will arrived in the cabin that was assigned to him and fastened the belt around him, making sure that the sword hanging on his left hip was secure. He then stuffed a pistol into his belt while holding onto the other one firmly. He was still busy preparing himself for battle when he heard a loud battle cry followed by a thunderous clashing of metal on metal. He looked up where the deck should be and stared in confusion as numerous pairs of footsteps pounded on the wood. Curious as to what was happening, Will went back up on deck only to find himself suddenly immersed in a battle with three pirates. He automatically fired his pistol against one of them and threw that to the side as the pirate he aimed at fell to the ground. The other two charged, and Will had managed to take out his sword just as one of them raised his sword and slashed vertically. He blocked and pushed one away from him only to be met by more pirates who continued to climb aboard the Accelerator in what seemed to him an endless flow.

Will skillfully brandished his sword against all of the men and charged out of the little circle they formed around him. He swiftly turned around and slashed across the chest of one then as quickly ducking before another sword went through his body. The rest of the pirates he had been fighting with were immediately occupied by other guards and so he made to move towards another who was not fighting with anyone.

A few minutes during the battle, Will found himself fighting a short distance from Norrington. He took this opportunity to ask the question he'd been meaning to ask him ever since the fight began. He stepped a little to the side, evading a thrust from his attacker, and continued moving and defending himself until he was side-by-side with the Commodore. He called his name once, then again when the other man didn't reply. It was only after the third time that Norrington snapped back in irritation.

"What do you want Turner?"

"I want to ask you..." Will paused as he stabbed the pirate he was presently fighting with through the chest and kicked him out of the way. He opened his mouth to continue just as another came towards him. "How did we engage ourselves," **Duck. Parry. Attack. Block.** "...in a battle hours earlier than what was to be expected?" More dodging, then more attacking. "No, let me rephrase that. Hours earlier than what _you _expected." Norrington grunted as he pulled his sword from a very portly man he stabbed and moved him aside to face more.

"We were caught by surprise when their blasted ship suddenly turned around and began sailing towards us. As a result, the time it took to reach their ship was cut short." He explained. Norrington raised his sword above his head to block a sword flying downwards towards him and took one step back. "I don't understand how it happened. One moment we were chasing them, the next they were suddenly headed towards us and within our sides after a few minutes." Will gave his sword a thrust at the pirate's throat and knocked him away for Norrington, his earlier expression of confusion now replaced with comprehension.

"It was probably the same feat we did before." Will began before falling into another fight with another pirate. "First they dropped the anchor, then they released their hold on the wheel and let the momentum of the ship swing itself around quicker than what a normal method would do." Norrington was shooting bullets with his rifle and was about to make a comment when Will interrupted him. "It been has done Norrington, and it can be done again."

"Whether or not your explanation is to be believed does not matter anymore." Norrington said while swinging the butt of his rifle on his assailant's head. "Despite their advantage on surprise, we have the upper hand on combat now."

But all of a sudden, both Norrington and Will could hear successive cries of pain and agony from all around the deck. Will's sword was suddenly knocked out of his hand while he was distracted by the noise. The sword flew in the air and fell to the ground away from his reach with a loud clank. He was about to get his other pistol from his belt as retaliation when a cutlass was raised to his throat. Norrington looked around him and widened his eyes as four daggers came flying towards two of his guards. All four made their mark on the two men and instantly sent them falling to the ground dead. More daggers flew, and each one managed to hit one of the guards. Before Norrington knew it, only Will and himself remained standing on the side of the Royal Navy.

"How-how is this possible?!" Norrington cried in disbelief. "Every single one of my men...killed by mere daggers within seconds!"

"Only one person is capable of doing that don't ye know Commodore?" One of the pirates jeered at him as he aimed a pistol threateningly. "The only person who can hit a target from a really great distance 100 out of 100 tries repeatedly. The person with the best skills in hitting targets-" He was quickly interrupted by the sound of footsteps growing louder as a person wearing a hooded cloak made their way towards Will and Norrington. He stepped aside immediately and let the hooded person face Norrington.

"Bring the other here." The person commanded. Neither Will nor Norrington could tell if the person was female or male by the tone of the voice. It was too monotone to give out any hint of the hooded stranger's gender. Will was forcefully pushed to Norrington's side while the stranger before them inspected the two carefully. "You must be the Commodore. And you...well you don't seem to be part of the Royal Navy, so what's your reason for embarking on this lovely trip?"

"I've come here to save my fiancee from you!" Will cried angrily. The stranger chuckled heartily to Will's annoyance as he moved away from the two men.

"Save your fiancee? Well then, my congratulations for a job well done. Oh." He stopped and looked around him as if taking note of where he was for the first time. "You haven't saved your fiancee yet, have you? My mistake." Will gritted his teeth and clenched his fist in anger as he narrowed his eyes at the hooded stranger. But before he could open his mouth and answer back, the man began to walk away. "I'll leave this to you my dear. Clean up the mess for me will you?"

"With pleasure." Will and Norrington looked away from the retreating figure of the hooded man and instead stared at the person coming towards them. Will widened his eyes in surprise and gaped with his mouth wide open while Norrington sneered.

"Well, if it isn't Sharpshooter Marine herself. Have you decided to come back to Port Royal after running away from the gallows?" The young black haired woman looked at both Norrington and Will with an evil smile on her face.

"It's nice to see the two of you too."


	4. Confrontations

**AN: **Hey guys! Next chapter is up. Yes, as you can see, Jack Sparrow finally appears in this chapter. Hope you enjoy, read and review!

* * *

**_"And I am oh so very glad to see the faces of the three people I was hoping never to see again. So how is life for the three of you?" - Captain Jack Sparrow_**

**Chapter 4 - Confrontations**

"What are you planning on Marine?" Will asked her as she stood there with her arms crossed. The hooded stranger had walked to the pirate's side of the ship and was gone from sight. "Kidnapping two women from Port Royal? There must be some reason for all this." He added. Norrington grunted as pirates came to hold him down by a gesture from Marine. The same was being done to Will at his side.

"There is no reasonable explanation for a pirate's actions Turner." He muttered darkly. "Even if they saved your life once, it doesn't mean that they're going to be good from then on." Marine stepped closer to Norrington and grinned manically. Will had seen Marine grinning before, and it was certainly much more friendlier then. He was partly glad that the female pirate wasn't facing him then. Norrington stood his ground against Marine and narrowed his eyes at her in return. The two of them engaged in a silent staring contest as Marine spoke.

"How right you are Commodore." She whispered harshly. Then she broke their contact by looking at Will. To the blacksmith, it seemed that even if Marine had lost the contest, she still won somehow. "You should learn from this man, Will. It will add more years in your life for you to enjoy with your lovely wife. If your wife manages to live that long, that is." At the mention of his beloved Elizabeth, Will furiously struggled with the pirates holding him. The side of Marine's lip curled as she walked closer to Will and held out a dagger to his throat.

"Now now Will, if you persist longer, I might have to kill you right here and right now." She taunted. Will stopped and glared at Marine with so much anger in his eyes. If looks could kill, Marine would have melted and died from his heated gaze. The pirates were having an easier time handling Will now that he had ceased struggling, but Will was still a restless angry man. One wrong move, and the blacksmith would be a big problem for the pirates.

"Where is Elizabeth? Where is she? What have you done to her?" He cried loudly. Marine gave a soft chuckle, pulling the dagger away from Will when she was sure he wasn't going to fight, and turned her attention to a few men who weren't doing anything.

"If you want to see her so much, then I'll give you the pleasure of it. Bring me the two prisoners." Four pirates straightened up and moved to the other ship at Marine's command. While they waited for the pirates and the two women, Norrington and Will desperately tried to think of a way to escape their predicament. They weren't speaking or planning together; each one was simply thinking of his own unique plan.

"What do you plan on doing to Elizabeth and the other woman? What's the purpose in kidnapping them?" Will asked her. Marine pretended to consider his question, placing a finger to her lip and pacing in front of them deliberately. Norrington followed her figure intently, possibly waiting for a chance to catch her off guard. After a few minutes Marine stopped and turned to Will with a mysterious smile on her face.

"Actually, I have no such purpose with your beloved Elizabeth. It's with the other woman that I have an interest in. She's...different from most women if you've noticed that." Marine said, leaving it at that. Will tried his best to recall the woman he saved earlier from the three thugs. She looked like an ordinary woman in town; not as well-off in society as Elizabeth perhaps, but still civilized and educated from the way she spoke. It was when Will remembered her clothes that he began to understand a little of what Marine said. She had worn a shirt and blue pants of a strange, new thread. He had never seen anything like it, though that was highly likely since he never left Port Royal except that time he went to Tortuga. She also made mention of the thugs and themselves being 'real'. That was one more clue to the woman's strange character. It seemed Marine knew everything about it though, with that smug, mysterious look on her face.

"And so I repeat the question Will Turner asked. What is your purpose?" Norrington asked, interrupting Will's thoughts. Marine looked at him once more and raised an eyebrow at him.

"What I plan for young Carrie Lockheart is none of your business Commodore. I suggest you worry about my purpose with you instead." At that sentence, Marine gave him a mischievous, evil grin. Before any of them could say anything further, the four pirates who disappeared came back dragging two familiar women onto the deck of the Accelerator. Elizabeth and Carrie weren't as presentable as they should be, having been dragged out of the house in the middle of the night during a heavy storm and being caged inside the brig ever since. But Will took no notice of this as he stared at his soon to be wife. All that occupied his mind was her, and how badly he wanted to save her from Marine and the rest.

"Let them go Marine!" Will demanded. "Send them back to Port Royal now!" This earned him a chilling laugh from the female pirate. The other crew members looked at each other and followed in the footsteps of their captain, laughing at something they didn't understand in order not to displease her. Marine raised a hand and the whole deck fell silent, making even Norrington feel a bit unnerved. She stood there before everyone, masterful, confident, strong and fearless. It didn't surprise Norrington that the men on the ship immediately followed her every command and whim. He sensed that the female pirate was not a force to be reckoned with lightly. After Marine had recovered from her mirth, she gave Will a smile that never reached her eyes.

"And what makes you think I'll do whatever you demand of me Will? Judging from our present situation, it should be I who'll be making the demands here." She said. Turning her head to the pirates, she ordered them to tie up the two men to the mast of the Accelerator. Elizabeth and Carrie looked at Will and Norrington with a mixture of concern and fear as they watched the two be dragged to where the large and tall column of wood was. Elizabeth turned her attention on the female pirate with a bit of hate in her eyes.

"What are you going to do to them?" Marine couldn't help but heave a sigh of frustration and pressed a hand to her forehead as she turned her gaze on Elizabeth.

"Why must all of you repeat the same questions to me over and over again? I'm getting sick and tired of listening to your whinny, pathetic complaints. If you want to be with your beloved so much, then so be it. Tie her up along with them!" She shouted. Carrie widened her eyes in fear as she felt Elizabeth slowly get dragged away from her. She held on to the other woman's hand as tightly as she could, tears falling down from her eyes like a broken faucet as the pirate tried to pull them away from each other. Marine stood there, arms crossed, an irritated look passing her face. With another frustrated sigh, she walked towards them and took out a dagger from out of nowhere.

"Let the goddamn lass go or I'll cut your hands off your pretty little body!" She said in a rough, threatening voice while pushing the knife in front of Carrie's face. "I won't take any of your blasted begging or pleading. Now do as I say or I won't be as merciful as I am now." Carrie let Elizabeth's hands go in her surprise and watched in defeat as Elizabeth was led to where Will and Norrington were being tied up. Her whole body trembled with fear as she looked at the person who was supposed to be her best friend. With a bit of flourish, the dagger Marine held in hand disappeared just as quick as it appeared. She gave Carrie no further mind as she moved to watch the other three people with a grin on her face. Will gritted his teeth in anger and glared at Marine with intensity.

"Why are you doing this Marine? This isn't like you!" He cried. Marine widened her eyes at him then crossed her arms with an amused expression on her face. "I know you, and you're not a kidnapping type of pirate. You're a good pirate! The Sharpshooter Marine I knew would never act so cruel and so heartless to any of her friends. Why?" The blacksmith was upset at finding his friend the cause of all these terrible problems. Marine couldn't help but chuckle with good mirth.

"Ah, such dramatic words Will. I could feel a tear coming." She mocked as she pretended to wipe an invisible tear with her finger. Will was terribly pissed at the way Marine was acting. The person she was presenting to them was an entirely different entity to the one he met the first time. "Give me the goods!" She cried, holding out her hands as a pirate passed a barrel of gunpowder to her. She grabbed the large thing and began to pour it around the three tied-up people. Once she was sure it was big enough, she tossed the barrel aside and grabbed a rope another man handed to her obediently. A wicked grin grew on her face as she put one end of the rope on top of the pile of gunpowder.

"Let's test out your luck, shall we?" With that, she began to unwind the rolled up rope in her arms, moving backwards and farther away from the mast at the same time. The rope fell on deck and was laid out in a long, snake like form. Marine circled the deck a bit, then stopped at the railing once she was satisfied. She dropped the rest of the rope before her feet and took out a box of matches from her pockets.

"Normally, I'd kill you all in an instant. There's nothing I like better than old-fashioned violence after all. But since I am a kind, good-hearted pirate," Snickers and chuckles from the rest of the crew followed her words and even she herself was smiling with amusement. "I decided to be fair and let fate play with your lives. Let's see if you're all meant to stay alive or die a wonderful, grand death." With a sharp command, everyone except the three tied-up people swung to the other ship. Carrie couldn't help but scream worriedly for Elizabeth as she was taken away. Marine ignored that and smiled sickeningly sweet at all three as she lit up a single match.

"One more thing before I leave you to your fates...say hello to the fishies for me." The smile never faded as Marine dropped the match and let the fire scatter all over the coil of rope. It didn't disappear as she swung across the water from one ship to the other. And it stayed etched onto Will's, Norrington's and Elizabeth's minds as the ship slowly sailed away from them. Marine stood on the railing of her own ship, holding on to one of the ropes that tied the sails, waving goodbye to them before laughing at something only she knew. The sound chilled their spines and made them shift uncomfortably in their position. They were very glad to see her leaving them instead of staying there and watching them struggle with that insane glint in her eyes.

"That cannot possibly be the Marine we've become friends with." Will muttered to himself as he saw the ship slowly grow smaller until it was only a black dot on the horizon. Norrington, who was tied up in between the couple, scoffed at Will.

"_Not a kidnapping type of pirate? A good pirate? Never act so cruel and heartless to any of her friends?_ It would surprise me more if that sickening pirate has any friends at all." He said. Will and Elizabeth both turned to the Commodore with unpleasant looks on their faces. Norrington ignored it and instead focused his attentions on trying to struggle out of the rope that tied him to the mast and rendered him immobile. The other two seemed to have remembered the situation they were in and began struggling as well. The flames that licked at the lump of rope slowly ate it up, and began to spread on the deck floor, creating a larger fire as seconds passed by. It might be only a matter of time before the flames reached the gunpowder and sent them exploding to their deaths. Perhaps only a miracle can save them now. It's fortunate for them then, that fate has an entirely different plan set out for them.

* * *

Carrie sat down on the chair inside the captain's cabin, glaring at the ground in front of her. She wouldn't dare look up in front of her, or at anything else for that matter, not wanting to face the truth of where she was and what was happening to her. She wasn't tied up or chained, but she knew that she was their captive whether she liked it or not. There was no way she could escape all of the pirates on the ship or fight them head on. That would have been too insane even for her. The hooded man from earlier was sitting on a chair across from her with his legs and arms crossed. He made no move to speak or to make any sort of noise, making Carrie feel uncomfortable. Despite the sunlight that flooded the room through the many windows built on one side of the wall of the cabin, Carrie couldn't make out the face of the other person in the room. The hood covered the face very well; not even a strand of hair was visible. He wasn't that tall, probably a few inches smaller than Elizabeth or Vanessa, with a rough-looking physique. From what she saw of his bronze-colored hands and arms, the man was gaunt, but muscled. Strong enough to fend off any attack she'd try on him. 

The sound of an opening door reached her ears and she turned to its direction to watch the female pirate Will addressed as Marine enter the cabin. She would not acknowledge her as Vanessa. Not when she was convinced that the woman before her, no matter how much they looked similar, was not her best friend. No one said anything as the female pirate walked past them towards a table filled with maps and the like. She shuffled through them quietly, muttering softly to herself from time to time. After a short while she walked back to the door and opened it wide enough for any of the men outside to see her.

"Kipper, take the wheel. Make a heading for Nassau." The large and gruffy pirate she addressed gave a curt nod before moving along towards the helm of the ship. Marine closed the door once she was sure that her order was going to be followed and only then did she notice the two other people inside the room. Her lips curled to a slight frown as her eyes settled on Carrie.

"What are _you_ doing here? You're supposed to be locked up in the brig."

"You can calm your nerves Marine." The hooded stranger spoke up with a hint of amusement in his voice. "I asked the men to release her and asked her to accompany me in the cabin. There is no reason for this young woman to be treated so harshly when she could not possibly find any means of escape." This earned him a soft snort of irritation and a roll of the pair of eyes from Marine, but nothing else. It seemed that the female pirate held some sort of respect or diffidence towards the hooded stranger. "Now, I would like to question your plans of going to...what was it again? _Port Nassau_?" Marine turned to him with a small mysterious smile on her face.

"Oh, just planning to meet up with an old friend. He can help us find what we are looking for." Carrie never left her gaze from the floor, but her ears perked up at the direction of the conversation. She couldn't understand what they were talking about of course. Just that they were headed for a Port to talk to a man who can help the pirate with their goal. Blue eyes suddenly met hers and stared openly in silence, breaking her train of thoughts. Carrie couldn't help but give a short cry of surprise as she jerked herself backwards; almost toppling off her chair. If Marine hadn't stepped onto the edge of the chair and moved it upright, she would have fallen to the ground painfully. A small amused smile lit the female pirate's face, but Carrie didn't see it, and didn't want to see it. She continued to stare at the ground as hard as she could, as if it was the most interesting thing in the world.

"What's the matter Carrie? Can't handle looking at your _best friend_ now?" The taunt was deep and the fact that it came from a familiar voice made Carrie feel even worse. Still, she made no move to face Marine. A finger held her chin and forced her to look up, but Carrie shut her eyes close very tightly. There was a heavy and weary sigh from the person in front of her; their breath brushing across her face lightly. "What's the point of not looking at me? You're not going to be saved by thinking that I'm not here."

"That's not why I'm not looking at you." Carrie answered softly, wishing that the female pirate would just leave her alone. Unfortunately for her the presence was still there, and had no intention of leaving until it got what it wanted. She heard no reply from the other woman who still held her chin, and knew that she was silently asking her for the answer. "I...I don't want to see your face and remember..." She choked as a sob struggled to escape from her mouth. "You're not my best friend. You're just some person who looks and sounds like her. I don't care what you say, you can't be her. You can't be." There were no tears yet, but she knew that if she was pushed further, they would most likely come right after. Marine rolled her eyes at her and dropped her hand from Carrie's chin, standing straight and crossing her arms in front of the blond haired woman.

"You're still not convinced? Even Elizabeth and Will have fallen to the belief that I am who I am. Quit denying it and just accept that you're looking at your best friend." Carrie violently shook her head, her blond hair swinging side to side. A sly, evil smile grew on Marine's face as she stared at Carrie. The hooded stranger watched with interest as the black haired pirate began pacing across the length of the cabin. The sound of her boots hitting the wooden floor was louder than it seemed in the air of silence that engulfed them all.

"Alright then. I'll just have to prove it to you. Ask me a question. Any question that you think only your best friend knows." Carrie considered this hesitantly. Doubt reigned over most of her emotions as she finally looked up at Marine. Her lips tightened in a straight, firm line and her eyes narrowed with determination.

"What's your name?"

"Vanessa Silvestre."

"Where do we live?"

"New York City, USA."

"What's my favorite movie?"

"You don't have one. You practically love most of the popular ones we've watched."

"What do I hate the most?"

"You hate eating nuts, you hate animals and you absolutely think any form of an insect is disgusting and should be killed."

"What did I give you on your 15th birthday?"

"A sketchbook. And as an addition to that, you asked me to draw a large portrait of yourself on your own 11th birthday which followed mine three months after."

"What was the most embarrassing thing I've ever experienced?" Marine pressed a finger to her chin thoughtfully at that.

"Hm...that's a hard one. You've been through a lot of ridiculous, hilarious, foolish things that I can't decide which one would be your worst. I guess it would be on my 18th birthday when you pretended to be legally old enough to drink. You drank a bottle of alcohol and ended up almost signing yourself up to a strip club right in front of a couple of guys, one of which you mentioned caught your eye. A few days after that we met them at the park we were jogging through and they actually remembered us. You turned as red as a tomato that I thought you were going through some strange disease or something. One of the best things I've ever seen. I even took a picture of you in your drunken state and gave it to you in the form of a weird, homemade birthday card on your own 18th birthday."

"What's the biggest secret that I told you, that only you should know about?" Carrie whispered quietly. As Marine gave a confident answer to every one of her questions, she felt her doubts about the female pirate slowly disappearing to her dismay. She prayed that this question would catch her off guard. Only her best friend knew of the secret she hid since she made Vanessa promise not to tell anyone else. Marine looked at her in silence, then with a shrug, gave her the answer that she feared the most. Not because of the content of her secret, but because she knew the secret.

"You had an affair with some hot, sexy, charming guy. You're parents didn't approve of it, but you were too blinded by his stupid, cheap, pathetic tricks to see though his bullshit. So you spend two months going to night parties, cutting classes, smoking, drugs; the works. I tried to stop you from continuing, but you ignored my advices as well and told your arrogant guy to deal with me. Well I remember telling you all about it while I nursed the couple of bruises and cuts I got from his cronies. You still won't believe me." Carrie looked down at the ground and trembled. "Then one day, you find him going out with another woman. Being the heartbroken girl that you've become then, you decided to go to bars and drink all your sorrows away."

"Stop it..."

"You know, you had some nerve then, to suddenly pop into my apartment and come crying to me like a lost little puppy. You sought for my help, asked me what you should do. And me, being the good, closest friend that I am to you, decided that you were still worth helping out. You gave me such a hard time then; getting everyone we knew to believe that you were gone on an important research project for two whole months was no easy task. The truth of it was, I kept you hidden inside the guest room like a caged animal."

"Please, I don't want to hear it anymore."

"I locked the door to the room, and tied your wrists and ankles to the bed just to make sure you weren't planning on running away. I ignored all your shouting, your insults, your threats, your screams and cries. It was a wonder none of the other people living in the building came to check what was going on. Remember the times Carrie? When I tried to feed you and you'd keep screaming and tossing the food aside? What about the time when you attempted to get away with the drugs you kept without my knowing? Or the time I saved you from almost drowning yourself in the bathtub? Or the time when you..."

"**SHUT UP**!!!!" Carrie screamed, placing both hands to her ears and shaking her head violently, trying not to remember too vividly that moment in her life. Tears unknowingly flowed through her eyes down to her cheeks, making small stains on her jeans. It was only when she tasted something salty on the side of her mouth that she realized she was crying. Still, she couldn't stop herself from letting the tears flow. Marine stood there silently, letting her recover herself as much as she could. The hooded stranger took something out of his cloak and handed it to Carrie. She looked up in confusion and held the handkerchief the man gave her. She stared at him for a short while before using it to wipe away the mess on her face.

"Thank you..." She muttered softly. She stopped wiping after making sure that she wouldn't cry again and let her hands lie unmoving on her lap. She still didn't look at Marine, but there was a sense of defeat in her. "I suppose you're going to laugh at me and taunt me by telling me how stupid I was not to believe that you really are Vanessa."

"I could do that...but I'm not the type to find pleasure in other people's pains and sufferings. If I did mock you and all that, you'd just become an irritating nuisance. No, I prefer to just kill people and end their useless, meaningless lives. But you're not useless...yet. So you get to live." Marine smirked at her then turned her attention to the hooded stranger. "I've had enough of this. I'll be outside at the helm if you need me." She told him. The man simply waved a hand in acquiesce, not even bothering to look at her. Carrie watched Marine leave through the door before looking at the other occupant of the room. The handkerchief was still in her hands, but she didn't know if she was supposed to return it or not.

"You can get out of this room and take a look around the ship." The hooded stranger suddenly said, breaking the silence that had reigned over them when Marine had left. Carrie looked up at him in surprise then in hesitation at his suggestion. The hooded stranger motioned to the door with his head. "It's alright. I'll make sure that none of the pirates will lay a finger on you. Go. I'm sure the fresh air will make you feel better." Carrie hesitated for a while longer before standing up on the chair and going out of the cabin into the open air. A sea breeze blew past her and messed up the strands of blond hair that were free. She paid no mind to it as she walked out further into the open. She looked around as dirty, rugged men walked past her, doing chores and the like. It was exactly how she imagined a pirate ship would feel and look like, only she wasn't on the one she wanted to be on.

"So, decided to get out of that little broken-up shell of yours and take a look at the ship?" A voice called out to her. Carrie swiveled around and narrowed her eyes at Marine, who was standing at the helm with her hands on the wheel. Once Marine was sure that Carrie was not going to answer, the side of her lip curled up to a smirk. "Giving me the silent treatment eh? Just like old times. Well, no matter. Hey you! Over there!" Marine shouted. Carrie turned to the direction the female pirate was looking at and saw one of the pirate look up in confusion.

"Aye captain?" He asked as he fixed the dark blue bandanna that was wrapped around his head, hiding his hair from everyone. Marine pointed to Carrie who flinched slightly at the rude and sudden gesture. She was still a bit jumpy after being threatened with a knife to her throat. The pirate turned his gaze to Carrie in silence. An eyepatch covered one of his eyes, but the small piece of cloth failed to hide what seemed to be a black, burnt-like spot. Carrie wondered what had happened to his eye, but dared not ask him about it in fear of making him angry. The pirate turned his attention back to Marine, still waiting for his orders. Marine gave an irritated sigh as she rolled her eyes at him.

"Make sure the lass doesn't do anything troublesome while she's our beloved guest. If I hear a peep from her I'll make sure you suffer the consequences." She mentioned the last sentence darkly and threateningly, making the pirate stand straighter and stiffer. Once Marine was sure that the pirate got the order, she went back to her steering. The pirate who was ordered walked up to Carrie, hands in the long, buttoned up coat's pockets while grumbling angrily to himself. He stopped right in front of her, the one remaining eye he had glaring at her.

"Ye 'eard the capt'n lass. Ye better not get int' any trouble or I'll never 'ear the end of it." Carrie narrowed her eyes at the pirate in return and moved away from him, stomping angrily on the deck as she did so.

* * *

"There's some very black clouds rising over there Captain." First-mate Gibbs reported, standing beside the other pirate who was holding the wheel. "What should we do about it?" Jack rubbed his chin with rough, dirty fingers, thoughtfully considering the other man's previous observation. A grin slowly spread across his face as he turned to Gibbs enthusiastically. 

"We head for it, of course. Black clouds signify that the ship is either burning, in peril, or most likely both. Meaning there is a very big possibility that whoever owns that ship has some valuable, shiny goods we can make use of. And the taking possession of said valuable, shiny goods we can make use of is what we do best after all." He replied. Gibbs smiled at Jack and nodded in agreement.

"Aye Captain, that it is." He gave a curt sign of acknowledgment before walking off and shouting orders to the rest of the crew of the Black Pearl. Jack faced ahead, watching the black clouds swirl up and fade into the sky the higher it went. It reminded him of his time at the small, uninhabited island where he was marooned at. He couldn't help but grimace at the thought of Elizabeth Swann burning all the crates of rum on the island. The other woman who had been part of the plan also came to mind. He couldn't help but narrow his eyes at the two women who made his time at the small island miserable. He was glad to be rid of them, and was less than eager to see them again.

They were quickly moving nearer to the spot where the black clouds were rising from. Jack could see the small black dot grow larger for every mile they passed. He took out his looking glass from his coat pocket and peered at the speck. Enlarged, he saw a ship that was engulfed in fire. He couldn't tell what kind it was from their present distance though, and the black clouds kept him from seeing any flag that would have been raised. Curiously he wondered what ship it was, who owned it, and what had brought them on their unfortunate trip. Nonetheless, he rubbed his hands dry very eagerly, his eyes twinkling brightly with excitement. It was only a matter of time before their ships were side by side. He looked at the rest of his crew continuing on with their work and called their attention.

"Alright mates! This might seem an easy catch for the day, but I still want ye all to keep an eye out for anything suspicious. We wouldn't want to fall into any trap and ruin our reputation as the infamous pirates of the Caribbean do we?" This earned him a loud, energetic cry from his crew. He grinned at them all and nodded to himself. "Well then, let's see what fortune has been bestowed upon us mates." His crew began moving once more, preparing for any possible attack and for the most likely gathering of goods. Jack's face was a large, goofy smile of enthusiasm and excitement that suddenly fell as he clearly saw what kind of ship he was facing.

"Oh bugger...what are _they_ doing in the middle of the sea?" He rubbed his face and gave a sharp sigh of irritation and disappointment. The rest of the crew saw the same thing their captain did, and were just as upset as their captain. Jack didn't need to see the flag to know what kind of ship it was, but he could spot the red flag of the Royal Navy waving amidst the black clouds. Being familiar with most ships on the sea, Jack had recognized the structure of an HMS as soon as he set his eyes on it. They were not going to get anything good from the Royal Navy. Then all of a sudden, an idea hit Jack. The previous expression came back to him in an instant and those who saw it looked at him in confusion. Everyone on the Black Pearl knew how the mind of Captain Jack Sparrow worked, and they could tell by this face that Jack was up to something that might turn out to be worth their while.

"Keep a steady heading for that ship Gibbs." He told his first mate without any further explanations. He moved to one side of the helm as the other man moved to take the wheel. He stood there with his legs apart, his arms crossed over his chest, with a mischievous grin on his face. The Black Pearl was getting closer to the other ship, and stopped beside it with a very wide distance between them. Jack was never going to forgive his crew if they accidentally let the ship catch fire after all. Despite the distance, Jack's crew could feel the heat radiating from the other side strongly. The flames were dancing dangerously on the ship. It was going to be completely covered if it was further left alone. But even though the Navy ship was quickly being covered in large flames, it still managed to stay afloat for the moment. The pirate peered through the black smoke for a few minutes, and found something that interested him greatly.

"Gibbs, you and the rest of the crew stay here and await my orders. I'll be at the other side, asking some simple questions that need to be answered." He walked down the steps from the helm to the deck without waiting for a reply. The rest of the pirates watched their captain as he hoisted himself on the railings and grabbed a rope tied to one of the poles above. With a grace that none would have expected, Jack swung from the Black Pearl onto the deck of the burning ship. He landed close to the fire, but the pirate paid no mind to it. Instead he looked around the ship; inspecting its present state. The fire was growing larger quickly and was halfway through the deck. A long line of rope lay on the ground and wove its way towards the biggest mast at the middle of the entire ship. His eyes caught sight of three forms, tied up to the mast, that were obscured by the smoke. He moved closer and couldn't help but chuckle as he saw exactly who he was facing.

"Well, I never expected to find the three of you here...I was expecting to meet some boring, pathetic, uptight soldiers. But then again," At this Jack gave them all his trademark grin. "Meeting you is much more entertaining." The three people who were tied up to the mast gave three different reactions to Jack's introduction.

"Jack Sparrow..." Commodore Norrington muttered darkly, his eyes lighting up with angry flames as fierce as the ones licking the whole ship.

"Jack!" Will cried, sounding very relieved to meet someone he was very glad to see at the time.

"What are you doing here?" Elizabeth asked, looking at the pirate in disbelief.

Jack couldn't help but heave a weary sigh at all three and spoke to none of them. He looked down before their feet and raised an eyebrow in amusement at the pile of gunpowder gathered there. Now he understood what was supposed to happen and wondered who would be so mischievously clever as to put them in such painless torture. Not only that, he wondered about how lucky they were that he happened to pass by and caught sight of the black smoke rising from their burning ship. Will apparently thought of it as well since he spoke up again.

"Jack! Am I glad to see your face." Jack looked at the blacksmith with a wry smile.

"And I am oh so very glad to see the faces of the three people I was hoping never to see again." The irony was there, but it was mixed with slight amusement. "So how is life for the three of you?" He asked casually, as if he had no idea that the whole ship was burning and was close to exploding into oblivion. Will frowned at him and struggled with the ropes tied to him as if to remind Jack of their state.

"This isn't the time for games Jack. Please untie the rope and let us come aboard your ship." He said. He knew that despite being the most fearsome pirate in the Caribbean, Jack Sparrow was a good man. Pirate or no, he would save the three of them from their predicament. Both he and Elizabeth had saved him from being hanged once, so it was only fair that Jack saved theirs in return. Will kept thinking of reasons why Jack would and should save them, and was glad to find that he had quite a list of it.

So why does he feel like he's still in great peril?

Jack stayed silent as he squinted his eye at Will, then at Elizabeth. No expression came over his face as he looked at them, and it made Will shiver to think of what was running through Jack's mind. Lastly the pirate examined Norrington, who glared at him and silently growled to himself. The Commodore was cursing the gods for bringing in Jack to 'save their lives' once more. He began to wonder who was so cruel as to make him feel even more humiliated by being saved by the very man he swore to see hanged. Jack broke his gaze on Norrington and looked over the three of them again.

"Now why would I want to do that Turner? Even if I saved all three of you from certain danger and bring you back to Port Royal safe and sound, Norry over there would still be after me." He said. "Saving the noble Commodore, only to be rewarded with a noose around my neck is not a promising thought. No self-respecting pirate would ever think of saving someone who would stop at nothing to kill said person." Will's hopeful face fell as he narrowed his eyes at Jack. Elizabeth clenched her hands into angry fists as she glared at Jack as well.

"You are despicable Jack Sparrow. A despicable, greedy, selfish man!"

"Pirate." Jack answered back with a goofy grin and a shrug of his shoulders. "Now if there's nothing else you want to speak of with me, I shall head back to my beloved Pearl and sail away in peace." He turned around and was about to walk away when he heard Elizabeth speak.

"Are you really that cold-hearted Jack? To leave three helpless people to die a horrible death when you could have saved them so easily?" She asked rhetorically. Jack looked over his shoulder with a thoughtful look on his face. Then skillfully twisting his body around to face them once more, Jack crossed his arms at them.

"Let me see here...you want me to save the three of you. Let's start with yourself shall we?" He held out his hands and counted them as he spoke. "You fell into the water, making me save you from drowning, you burned my precious rum, you made Norrington and the rest of the Royal Navy come and capture me for saving you, you tried to slap me when I was trying to help you, you burned my rum, you've repeatedly insulted me, you burned my rum, you sent me to my own death because my crew left me, lastly you burned my rum. Will on the other hand," He looked at Will and held up his hand again.

"You fought with me and kept me from escaping, your bloody mate threw a bottle on my head and knocked me out cold, you suddenly come to me, asking me to help you save your bony lass after being one of the reasons I was sent to prison, you threatened me with a sword when I simply told you that your father was a pirate, you made me promise to give Anamaria a boat, you hit the back of my head with an oar, you tried to save Elizabeth and the crew but made no mention of me, you forced me to save you and almost got killed if it wasn't for that damned curse, lastly you made a very pathetic attempt at saving me by throwing at sword under my feet for me to balance on while my neck was still around the rope." He faced Norrington last, with an even grimmer smile.

"As for my old pal Norry...he wants to kill me. Enough said. So, think about what I've said before asking me again why I should save you." He told them. The three looked at each other in silence while Jack himself began walking away again.

"WAIT!!!" He stopped and with a sigh and a roll of his eyes, turned around once more to find all three looking less hostile towards him.

"What do you want _now_?"

"Untie this rope and give us passage on the Pearl. For that we shall reward you fairly." Elizabeth said with as much dignity as she could make. "Please Jack. Take us back to Port Royal and I swear to God that no harm shall fall on you or your crew." Jack gave her a considering look, then turned his gaze to Norrington.

"And what about you mate? You've been silent this whole time. Are you not going to plead for me to save your sorry self?" He grinned at this and ignored the hot, scathing look Norrington was giving him. Then he went on before anyone else could open their mouth. "Ah I know! I'll forgive everything you've done to me so far and save you from this ship. That is, if you agree to become part of the crew while you're on my ship, to promise me that you won't arrest us when we land on Port Royal, and...to admit to everyone present that you are the worst Commodore ever to set sail on the seas." He said the last part with a victorious, smug grin on his face. Norrington grimaced and gritted his teeth in rage. He narrowed his eyes at Jack and wished that he could get his hands on the pirate and kill him right there.

"I'll _never_ do something as dishonorable as that Sparrow!" Jack shrugged then took a sidestep as the rope he was standing on began to catch fire. Now as he looked around the deck once more, he noticed that the fire was half-way through the whole ship. Once the fire reached the gunpowder, it would be all over for the three of them.

"I'm afraid I can't let you on the Black Pearl then. You must either do everything that I asked of you, or die from the explosion that is about to take place soon." The three people tied to the mast looked at the length of the remaining rope and panicked. Will and Elizabeth were looking at Norrington anxiously. It was his decision that would determine everyone's fate. Norrington gave no hint of what he was thinking of then, with his eyes closed and his head facing the ground with the pile of gunpowder. Then after a couple of agonizing seconds, he looked up at Jack with a sense of resignment.

"Alright Sparrow. I...agree to your conditions."

"Really? You don't seem to be very convinced of your own words...how could I be sure that you wouldn't simply try to kill me the moment I have my back turned on you?" Jack asked him in amusement. Norrington glared at Jack.

"By knowing that I am not a lying, cheating, traitorous pirate such as yourself. You have my word pirate. Now free us before we all burn to death."

"I don't know...it still doesn't fit in my opinion..."

"**JACK SPARROW**!!" All three voices cried in anger and with a mix of impatience. Jack grumbled to himself as he moved to cut the ropes with his sword.

"Alright, alright. I'll set you free and take you with me to the Pearl. Now hurry up before we all get blasted to smithereens." As soon as he was sure that they were free from the rope, Jack quickly ran to the side of the ship closest to the Black Pearl and called out for Gibbs to toss him a rope. The rest followed him quickly, brushing past burning wood and the like. Black smoke surrounded them and made breathing a difficult task, but none of them minded it as they watched Jack grab hold of something that was thrown to him from the other ship. He gave the rope to Elizabeth and made her swing to the other side, followed after by Will. The blacksmith paused and looked at them in panic.

"The prisoner Norrington! He's still at the brig!" The Commodore widened his eyes as he also remembered the other man on the ship. He cursed to himself as he ran to the stairs below deck. Jack gave a frustrated sigh as he made to follow the man down the stairs. Their boots pounded on the brittle wooden floor as they ran as fast as they could to the cells. Norrington took out the keys from his pocket and was searching for the right one before they even reached the cell John was in. He unlocked the door, pulled it open and grabbed the man without another word. He turned around and was surprised to find Jack there but made no move to talk to him. Instead the two of them began running back to the deck and saw the fire close to reaching the gunpowder.

"Hurry man! We've got no more time to lose." Jack cried as he dragged Norrington to the railings. Gibbs threw the rope to their side once more and was jumping with impatience as Jack failed to catch it. The pirate was about to tell Gibbs to throw it again when he saw the fire licking the rope very close to the pile of gunpowder. His face fell and he suddenly stepped onto the railings to Norrington's annoyance.

"What on earth are you thinking Sparrow?! We do not have time for your silly little games."

"Stop chattering and take a deep breath Norry." There was no time for Norrington to give an angry retort to Jack or to do as Jack said. For right after Jack spoke, he grabbed Norrington's coat and threw all three of them over the railing onto the cold-cutting water just as the ship bursted into a bright orange flame and began sinking to the ground in piles of ashes and broken pieces of wood.


	5. The Unexpected Savior

**AN: **Hey there! There aren't any reviews so I'm a little bit sad about that. But what the heck, I'm writing this to my good friend (you know who you are) who I'm sure would love to see me finish at least one more story that I've concocted in the whirlwind I call a brain. Here it is. Enjoy.

* * *

_**"It just goes to show you that life has a sense of humor. You ask it for something and it gives you the help that you would never have expected from it." - Patches**_

**Chapter 5 - The Unexpected Savior**

Norrington spluttered and coughed out water as he, Jack and John were pulled up with ropes onto the deck of the Black Pearl. They were quickly sailing away from the Accelerator; the few remaining pieces of it that were still covered in flames slowly sinking to the ground. Will and Elizabeth ran up to them worriedly, but the former stopped when he looked down at the man who was supposed to be John. The red uniform had passed their eyes when the only thing they could think of was escape. The hat placed on top of the man's head also helped to hide his identity. Will reached down for the hat and pulled it away from the man to find himself staring at one of the Royal Navy with a gag on his mouth. That was when he realized that his hands were tied up behind his back.

"Norrington." He called. The Commodore and Jack looked up as they quickly recovered from their swim and stared at the other man who was still trying to breathe normally. Norrington narrowed his eyes as he coldly took out the dirty rag stuffed in the man's mouth. The guard inhaled deeply when the gag was removed and looked at his Commodore thankfully. Norrington wasn't happy though.

"Where is the prisoner?" He asked. The man flinched at Norrington's gaze and looked down on the ground as he gave his answer.

"It was before the pirates came and attacked the ship sir. When we were still preparing ourselves for the fight. He...he tricked me into opening the cell and knocked me out before I could realize what he did." He explained. "I couldn't remember anything else that he did after that." Norrington could feel his anger grow as he glared at his man.

"So are you telling me that despite my orders, the man who calls himself John Knightley is gone?"

"Yes sir...I apologize for my lack of focus sir. It won't happen again." Norrington rubbed his face and closed his eyes. He was angry at the man for losing a possible pirate, but what's done is done, and he couldn't do anything about it. There was no use venting his frustrations and his anger at him. He opened his eyes and looked at the guard before walking away from him. He gave no reply, but he knew that the man knew that he was forgiven. Norrington stood behind the railings of Jack's ship and watched another of his own ship disappear into the sea. He gripped the railings tightly and gritted his teeth in anger. How long...how much longer must he stand all the humiliation and defeat?

"Oh Norry..." Jack's singsong voice called out, catching the attention of everyone on board the Pearl. Norrington turned away from the sorry sight of his ship and faced Jack Sparrow, who was walking towards Norrington with a mischievous grin on his face. "It's time you did your part of the bargain mate."

Much longer by the looks of it.

Norrington watched as Jack stopped in front of him with a triumphant, smug air about him. Neither said a word and simply stared each other down. Will and Elizabeth stood among the rest of Jack's crew and watched the two men as sparks of tension and hostility flew between them. After a moment more, Jack spoke and waved his arm outward, gesturing to everyone.

"Now be a man of your word Commodore, and state to everyone present today that you are the worst Commodore ever to set sail on the seas. I want you to shout it out loud, sound like you really mean it and that you're proud of it." Jack said, earning snickers and chuckles from some of the crew. The lone guard widened his eyes in surprise then narrowed them at Jack. Norrington narrowed his own eyes at the pirate and clenched his hands into fists. He wanted so badly to take out his gun or sword and kill Jack right then, right now. As they stared at each other longer, he began to wish he could lunge at the pirate and strangle him to death.

"If you don't say it, I shall have to throw you overboard. Don't think I don't want to do that because I really do." Jack threatened lightly. Before now, Norrington would have laughed and told Jack that he would never dare do that to him. But after meeting the pirate and getting a taste of the scoundrel, Norrington has learned to become wary of the seemingly harmless pirate. He knew that Jack Sparrow did not live long because he was good or soft on others. He took a deep breath, closed his eyes and muttered aloud.

"I...I am the worst Commodore...ever to set sail on the seas."

"What was that? I couldn't hear you well enough. Try saying it again louder, with passion this time." Jack taunted. Norrington growled under his breath and did as Jack told him to.

"I am the worst Commodore ever to set sail on the seas."

"Much better. But I want to hear it one last time."

"**I am the worst Commodore ever to set sail on the bloody seas**!" Norrington roared angrily. The crew cheered, hollered and laughed at Norrington as he stood there with his shoulders slumped in defeat and embarrassment. No one took note of his whole body as the Commodore slightly trembled in anger. Will and Elizabeth looked at him sympathetically and narrowed their eyes at Jack together. The pirate felt two sets of eyes staring at him and turned to the couple with an amused grin on his face.

"Now don't look at me like that. I was simply enjoying a chance to make fun of old Norry. That's going to be the worst of it I assure you." He said. The expression on the couple never changed but Jack Sparrow decided that the topic of discussion was over and quickly moved on to another one. "Now, would any one of you explain to me why you were on a burning Navy ship that was about to explode?"

"Your dirty, loathsome, insufferable pirate friend is to be blamed for that." Norrington spoke up. "The pirate was sighted on a ship close to Port Royal yesterday. One of the men on the ship kidnapped Miss Swann and another young woman who we met earlier that morning. We were supposed to go after them but they retaliated and killed each one of my men with much ease to my dismay." Jack froze and he looked at Norrington with a confused expression on his face. The casual, humorous persona disappeared and was replaced with a serious, focused one.

"Who?"

"Sharpshooter Marine." Norrington answered while glancing at Jack, thinking that the pirate was affected by the name. Jack made no reaction whatsoever though, and simply stared at Norrington. Then he looked at Will and Elizabeth as if looking for confirmation. When they nodded to him, answering an unasked question, Jack looked out on the open sea with a considering look. No one could tell what the pirate was thinking as he gazed at something beyond the horizon.

"So she's here then..." He muttered softly, yet loud enough for Norrington to hear.

"I assumed that you knew of your accomplice's whereabouts Mr. Sparrow, seeing as you two are well acquainted." Norrington said. Jack couldn't help but make a face at Norrington.

"The last time I saw the lass was on the night before I was supposed to be hanged. As you can recall then Commodore, she disappeared when you arrived to get me."

"Yes I do seem to recall it painfully..." Norrington couldn't help but mutter irritatingly to himself. He was still sore about the escape of two notorious pirates after all. He looked up at Jack when he realized that he was waiting for his reply and coughed to try and distract them from his momentary pause. "Strange, for I would think you'd go looking for the female pirate after her mysterious and sudden escape. She left you there to die after all."

"Trust me Norrington, I would have if I didn't know for myself that she should have never come back." Norrington looked at Jack in confusion but didn't get the chance to speak as Jack continued. "Sure, I've heard some rumors about her. Most of them came from farther ports though, so it's not surprising that you never heard of it. There was quite a lot of them, but I ignored them all, thinking that it must be some lad's attempt to become the center of attention. Most so called legends started with drunken men telling amazing rum-induced stories after all." He added with a goofy grin. "When people kept telling me about how Sharpshooter Marine is going around looting and plundering, as what pirates do best, I couldn't believe it. Why should I believe whatever they said when I knew the truth of it?"

"What do you mean by that Sparrow? What truth are you talking about?" The Commodore asked suspiciously. Jack stared at him for a few minutes before shrugging and walking away to send orders to his crew.

"Get a move on you scabrous dogs. This ship isn't going to move on its own. Gibbs! Make a heading for Nassau and be quick about it. Wouldn't want to make Norry mad would we?" He teased as he glanced over his shoulder at the ticked off man. Norrington narrowed his eyes at Jack but did nothing. He only glared at the pirate, as if it would bound him in chains and send him to the gallows of Port Royal if he did. Will and Elizabeth walked up to Jack together and looked at him in confusion. The rest of the people on the Black Pearl began to move about energetically, hoisting the anchor, raising the sails, preparing the ship to set sail once more. Gibbs walked up towards the helm since he was the one Jack ordered to see them to the port.

"Nassau?" Will asked when he was sure Jack would listen. "Aren't you going to send us back to Port Royal?"

"What about Carrie? How are we going to save her?" Elizabeth asked to no one in particular. She was very worried for her new found friend and wanted to rescue her as soon as they can. They had no idea what Marine had planned for the woman who was supposed to be her best friend, but she doubted it would be anything good. The female pirate had coldly placed a knife to Carrie's throat and threatened her to release Elizabeth. She didn't think any close and loyal friend would do it with a look that said they meant it. Jack waved his arm at the two as he stepped away from the wheel and climbed down the stairs towards his own cabin.

"You have nothing to worry about Will. I will send the four of you back to your lovely home in no time. But I won't assist you in rescuing a damsel in distress so you'll have to deal with that problem yourselves. For now, I must see to a quick errand of mine. Pirate business. You wouldn't want to become involved with it." He said before either of the two could open their mouths and ask. He was halfway to his cabin then. He stopped just as he reached the door and turned around to face them as he recalled something.

"Oh I almost forgot. Carter!" He shouted. A young man rushed up before the captain and gave an offhand salute. He was a new recruit from Tortuga. Young, wild, energetic, and still inexperienced in the true ways of the pirate. Jack had some high hopes for the man and wanted to teach him everything he knew about the trade.

"Aye captain?" The young lad asked.

"Bring the guard, the Commodore and young Turner to Gibbs and tell 'im to give them something to do on the Pearl. They will be his responsibility while I'm busy." He ordered. Carter nodded and looked at Will and Norrington expectantly. The two men had no choice but to follow the other man up to the helm where Gibbs was steering the wheel. The guard on the ground got his strength back and stood up to follow Norrington loyally. He was smart enough to know that he was going to have to follow a pirate's orders if he wants to survive the trip. Jack held the doorknob to his cabin then stopped to glance over his shoulder at the remaining passenger. "As for you Miss Swann, feel free to go about the Pearl as you like. If you want to find something to do ask Gibbs. I'm sure he'll find something that you can handle." He said. Elizabeth moved closer to the cabin and halted Jack before he could close the door.

"What are you going to do?" She asked curiously. Jack placed a finger to his chin in thought before grinning at the young woman.

"Why, to get me some bottle of rum of course." That was when he remembered what happened a month ago and narrowed his eyes at her. "You. Stay away from my rum." And with that, the captain of the Black Pearl disappeared from the crew's sight for the rest of the day.

* * *

The sweat and the heat was getting to her, Carrie knew. That was why she decided to sleep on the deck that night, where it was cooler. It might be uncomfortable, but she didn't care about that. Now she was lying on her back right there at the deck of the ship, staring up at the sky as it slowly gave off an orange-reddish hue. Even though day was still a few hours away, she could feel the warm climate biting at her skin. She looked down at herself with a grimace. What used to be white had now turned a reddish tone after being under the sun for a few days. She envied Marine, or Vanessa as she sometimes wanted to be addressed as, and the way her skin glowed a natural golden brown. As if thinking of the female pirate summoned her, Carrie heard the sound of boots and found her sight blocked by blue eyes and a small grin. 

"What on earth are ye doing there?" She asked. Carrie sat up and turned around to look at Marine standing before her. She gave a casual shrug before standing up and brushing off the dirt on her clothes; the same ones she had been wearing ever since she arrived in the world of Pirates of the Caribbean. Carrie grimaced at the thought of not having a good bath, wearing her shirt that's soaked with dirt and sweat. Marine left it at that, not bothering to question her further. She looked around now, her eyes narrowing when she didn't see what she was looking for.

"Where's the man I ordered to keep an eye on you?" She asked. Patches, Carrie remembered, was the name the pirate wanted her to call him. He had been an obedient crew member, keeping an eye on her wherever she went. It surprised her that the man was nowhere to be found now. She watched as Marine gazed about the deck, at the helm and the rest of the ship that was visible, until her eyes settled on something above them. Carrie craned her neck up and saw a piece of cloth fluttering against the sea breeze that slowly came along with the dawn. She recognized it as Patches' and looked to Marine to hear her cluck her tongue in irritation.

"Call the man and tell him to get to work." She ordered before moving away towards the helm. Carrie gave a soft and weary sigh before walking right under the crow's nest and placing a hand to her mouth.

"Patches! Patches wake up!" She shouted. She heard a scuffling sound above, followed after by a low groan. The coat disappeared quickly and when Patches' head peeked out of the crow's nest, he had already donned the clothing. Even from that distance Carrie could see the remaining eye he had glaring down at her in annoyance.

"What do ye want lass?"

"The captain told me to tell you to get to work." She replied. She smirked, already picturing a very peeved Patches in her mind. She could imagine him going down the rigging and muttering angrily to himself, most likely complaining about the job he had been handed with and cursing Marine for picking him of all people. As much as she hated to admit it, the pirate had been rather well with her. He did his job well, keeping any other pirate who was looking at her away or vice-versa. Even though all he ever did was complain and grumble, Carrie actually began to feel comforted with the strange companionship they had. He wasn't really friendly to her nor did he show that he cared about her. He just kept her company, and that made her feel better in the prison of the ship she's learned to cope with.

"Damn ye woman! Ye should have woken up at a much more normal time like the rest of the world does. Ye act like a bloody rooster." He grumbled as he jumped down from the ropes and stretched out his muscles. Carrie tried to suppress a chuckle in vain and earned herself a glare from the pirate. He rolled his one eye and sighed. "Might as well get to it then, since you're awake. What be it this time lass? Down the galley, at the kitchen, the brig, the cabins, or maybe ye want to plunge down into the cold waters this time? You'll surely enjoy that." He asked in sarcasm. Carrie ignored the last part and placed her hands behind her back innocently.

"Well I just want to stay here, on deck, and ask you some questions." She replied. Patches snorted at her in disbelief but stayed quiet and let Carrie walk about the deck. She leaned on the railings of the ship and stared beyond the horizon. The pirate walked up right beside her and leaned forward as well, the two of them falling in a sense of tranquility. Unfortunately for the pirate, Carrie broke that silence earlier than he would have liked.

"You wouldn't have any idea of what Sharpshooter Marine is going to do at Nassau Port do you?" She asked. Patches stayed silent for a long while; not an inch of him moved or stirred. Just when Carrie was about to repeat her question to the pirate, he mumbled a reluctant answer.

"Who knows what the captain's thinking of. No one would dare question her orders. If ye want to know so badly, why don't ye ask yourself?" He asked. Carrie couldn't help but shudder at the thought of asking such a question to Marine. She understood how none of the pirates on the ship would be so foolish as to ask the captain about her orders. She's never actually seen it, but she's heard of stories about how Marine called forth a sea snake and made it eat up a whole man. She was not going to try and find out if those stories are true.

"Nah...I'll find out about it sooner or later after all. All I have to do is wait a bit more."

"You won't have to wait long." Patches muttered as he stood up straight, his head turned sideways at something in front of the ship. "We're here." Carrie looked up ahead of them and saw the land beyond growing larger as they moved closer to it. The town gave an ethereal glow as the sun slowly rose behind them, hiding the imperfections of the less admirable places in Port Nassau. The sounds of men running about the deck as they prepared to dock at the port reached Carrie's ears. She turned away from the scenery and saw Marine standing before the steering wheel, shouting orders at the crew. The female pirate sensed the pair of eyes on her and looked down at the young woman eye to eye. A small smirk grew on her face as she saw her. Calling one of the crew to take the helm, she moved down the stairs towards her. Patches immediately stepped back as Marine stopped in front of Carrie.

"Are you looking forward to our little trip Carrie?" She asked, placing a hand on the other woman's shoulder in a friendly manner. "I'm sure you'll enjoy being on land for a little while." She added when she felt Carrie flinch at the touch. The young woman ignored her and focused her attention instead on the approaching town. She wondered what interesting things she would find, what kinds of people she was going to meet, what Marine planned on doing and especially, if she was going to find her chance of escape there. They were getting close to the port now, with the gust of a good breeze the ship is sailing with. The two women stayed put while the rest moved about without giving them a second glance.

Minutes passed and before anyone knew it, they were right among the other ships that docked at the port. Carrie winced when she suddenly felt the grip of the hand on her shoulder tighten. She didn't realize that it was still there. Before she could open her mouth, she was forcefully dragged from where she was standing towards a gangplank that was about to be lowered by some of the pirates.

"You're coming with me." Marine told her while staring ahead. Carrie couldn't hide her surprise and pleasure at the female pirate's command. She expected Marine to send her to the brig and keep her there during their stay at the town. Now she had a chance to see what Marine was planning on.

_But letting me come with her on her business means that her plan has something to do with me. Oh I hope they won't turn me into a sacrifice or make me sell my soul or something like that._

The ship gently bumped onto the wooden planks of the port without shaking the structures much to everyone's relief. Marine turned around to face all of the pirates who were standing behind them, waiting for the signal to get down and do what they wish with their free time. She pointed to two men among the crowd and heard a couple of grumbles. Both men knew what they were supposed to do and they weren't pleased about that fact. Carrie noticed that one of them was Patches, who was glaring heatedly at their captain. None made a move to object or complain openly though. Marine gave a curt nod once she was sure that both men would stay on the ship and sent the rest of the crew off. Carrie was about to follow the eager men when the hand on her shoulder pulled her back. She faced Marine with confusion on her face and was about to open her mouth to ask what was wrong when Marine suddenly shouted impatiently.

"Hurry up Maurice! I'm not willing to stand idly while waiting for you to come crawling to us." Carrie blinked in surprise as the hooded man from before came out of the captain's cabin casually. Despite the angry tone in Marine's voice, the man showed no fear and made no move to hurry. He stopped right behind them, hands behind his back, as he gestured to Marine to move. With one last glare at Maurice, Marine turned her head ahead of them and walked down the plank towards the town. Carrie followed right beside her with bright, eager eyes. She's never been to Nassau and so was looking at everything all at once.

She felt like she was going on a bargain hunt, with everyone calling out to passers by while shouting their wares and services to them. Sometimes Marine would bend over one of the vendor's stalls and browse through their wares. She never bought anything from the stores though. As they walked, men pulling carts and carriages ran past them with great speed towards some place or other. The sound of people going about their business mixed in with the sound of the clanging of metal at the blacksmiths filled the air. Giggling children ran past the group as they played and chased each other around. Women, men and old folks walked about the roads and often bumped each other, yet none gave any specific notice to that. To Carrie's surprise, no one gave Marine a second glance and brushed past her as easily as the rest. She guessed that no one wished to meddle with a pirate, but wondered why the authorities aren't doing anything about the presence of such lawbreakers in their lands.

They passed through the busy, crowded marketplace and reached the less rowdy part of Nassau as the sound of everyday work faded behind them. Carrie looked around the plain, one-story houses with dark tiled roofs, some with presentable little gardens at the front barred from any stranger by fences of all types. Most of them looked simple; such were the buildings of residence of middle class people. It was towards one of these plain and simple looking houses that Carrie, Marine and the hooded man addressed as Maurice headed to. They stopped right in front of the door which had little slits decorated on it. Carrie inspected it further and realized that they were blades that were repeatedly stabbed through. Before she could do anything else about it, Marine pushed her forcefully to the side and began banging on the door. It was a surprise to her that the door didn't immediately fall apart with the impact the pirate made.

"Jones! Jones are you there? Open the door." She shouted as loud as she could. Silence answered her back; nothing inside gave any sign of movement. Marine moved to one of the windows and tried to peer through the glass. After a few seconds she looked at Carrie and Maurice grimly. "He's not there. Probably out doing business as usual." She told them. Maurice gave no hint of disappointment or any sort of reaction and merely watched her.

"So are we going to wait for him here?" Maurice asked. Marine stared at some invisible object beyond their sights with a considering look on her face. Then with a small sigh, she shook her head.

"No we don't have to wait for him. I'll just get someone to do it for us. Let's go back to the ship." She said. Carrie couldn't help but be a bit disappointed at not getting to the bottom of things quickly. She wanted to know the female pirate's plans as soon as possible so she could find a way to escape or counter it. Together, the three of them silently walked back to the ship, each in their own little thoughts. Carrie wasn't so eager to look about as she seemed the first time they passed through. It seemed as if all the excitement in her had been sapped when they reached an empty house. In no time at all, they reached the large ship and found Patches and the other pirate on deck playing cards. The two pirates caught sight of them and jerked upright from where they sat, letting the cards fly all over the ground carelessly. Marine ignored the cards as she walked up to them, even going so far as to step on some of them.

"Put the girl back in the brig. I don't want her roaming about the place freely. No buts." She added before Carrie could open her mouth to complain. "You go look for three men and tell them to keep an eye on the ship. Once you do, you're free to go." She told Patches, who seemed even angrier than before to Carrie's surprise. Marine took no important notice of it and turned her attention to the other pirate next. "You on the other hand, have to go into town at this address," She handed him a small scrap of paper from her pocket. "And wait for a man named Jones to arrive. When you see him send him to me immediately. I'll be at the _Sailor's Cove_ for the rest of the day. If I find out that you two failed to do as I say there will be dire consequences for you both." She threatened them. The two pirates gave nods before grabbing Carrie and dragging her down below deck. Carrie was used to being ordered and sent down to the brig that she made no move to struggle with them. Before she disappeared into the darkness below, she saw Maurice casually walking back to the captain's cabin, his favorite place it seemed, while Marine went back into the town.

The two pirates threw her into one of the cold, slimy, dirty cells and locked it. Carrie looked up and watched in dismay as they walked away, leaving her there all alone. She sat down on the sloppy ground and leaned against the wall with her arms wrapped around her legs and pressed them against her chest tightly.

_Please let someone come and get me out of this hell hole..._

* * *

**Tick. Tock. Tick. Tock.**

Even without the object itself, Carrie could hear the imaginary ticking of a clock, torturing her with its slow steady rhythm. It was night thankfully, but insanity crawled at the edges of her mind ever since the pirates had imprisoned her there. She couldn't take not doing anything for hours on end and had to entertain herself with petty things. A pirate she recognized as one of the crew came a few minutes after she was locked in to her relief. She tried to get the pirate to talk or to do anything with her to pass the time but the man only ignored her. So she spent her morning trying to make the man's life a living hell. She would sing ridiculous, annoying songs over and over again until the pirate roared at her to shut up. Then she made music to keep her busy by banging rocks and sticks on the steel bars. The pirate grabbed those away from her when he couldn't take it anymore.

The sun slowly sunk into the west, bringing the whole town into darkness. In recompensation, a full moon casted its soft light from the blanket of black velvet decorated by tiny twinkling stars that looked like gems in the sky. Carrie could barely see it in the small window of the cell she was in, but she saw enough to know that it was night. Despite knowing the estimation of the time then, Carrie didn't feel like sleeping. Not when she was supposed to sleep on the dirty, rock-solid ground that was possibly crawling with rats, cockroaches and the like. Instead of that, she spent her time thinking of a warm, comfortable bed and a nice, long bath.

The pirate who was guarding her stood against the cold steel bars and stiffled a yawn as he looked around him lazily. He was frustrated at the fact that he had to stay and guard the young woman while the rest of the crew were out and about Nassau drinking and having some fun. He gave a soft sigh then tensed at the sound of footsteps coming down from above deck. Both guard and prisoner looked up to see the form of a man come down the stairs. The pirate guarding Carrie held up a lamp above him and raised an eyebrow when he saw Patches coming down the stairs with bottles in his hands.

"What are ye doin' here lad?" The pirate asked suspiciously. Patches raised the things he carried and revealed them as bottles filled with rum. That was when Carrie noticed the slight unbalanced sway of his legs as he moved towards them. Even when standing upright his whole body moved side to side. She never saw him drunk before and wondered how he was when he is. Patches placed the bottles on the ground ungracefully before looking back at the pirate.

"Thought you could use a little break from the lass, since it looks like yer not goin' to leave the brig for a while." He said, handing one of the bottles to him. He uncorked one in his hand and took a large gulp of it, proving to the pirate that the bottles weren't poisoned. The pirate smirked and grabbed the bottle from Patches' hands eagerly.

"Aye I could use some rum." Patches sat down together with the other pirate and drank rum with him while discussing random things with him. Carrie was shocked at Patches' very outwardly friendly manner to the other pirate. It was as if the pirate before her wasn't the same one who was ordered to guard her. They talked, laughed, drank the numerous bottles of rum until there wasn't a speck of it left in any. Carrie saw the pirate before her transform from a stiff angry man to a very drunken one. The pirate blinked ahead of him as if he couldn't see. His body swaggered even while he and Patches were sitting down on the ground. At some point in their enjoyment, Patches laughed and pushed the pirate's shoulder as he made another joke and watched as he fell to the ground unconscious. Patches looked at him, counted the seconds in silence, before taking a deep sigh of relief.

"I thought he'd never pass out." He mumbled as he moved closer to the pirate and rummaged through his pockets. Carrie realized that after the other pirate fell off, Patches' movements were stable and certain. He wasn't swaying and slurring anymore as he fished out the ring of keys from the other man.

"What are you doing?" She asked him. Patches tried the first key on Carrie's cell then pushed it aside when it wasn't the right one. "You're going to get slaughtered or worse if Marine hears of this." She added worriedly. Patches, though he wasn't much of a gentleman or a kind man for that matter, was one of the two people on the ship who treated her like a human being; Maurice being the other man. She didn't want anything bad to happen to the pirate. Patches didn't reply to her and simply continued finding the key to the cell.

"So did you find out what the captain was planning on?" He asked all of a sudden, surprising Carrie from her thoughts. He was still going through the keys on the ring, but it was clear to her that he was waiting for an answer. Carrie shrugged and watched indifferently as the sound of keys clinking together soothed her tense and nervous self.

"Didn't have the chance to. When we arrived at our destination the person she was looking for wasn't there."

"I guessed that much when you came back a few minutes after leaving the ship." He said. Carrie looked at him in confusion. _When was Patches this talkative and why was he doing it now?_ She couldn't understand the man in front of her as he continued on with what he was doing. "So where did you and the captain go?"

"We went to a less rowdy part of town. Where rum doesn't exist and whores were invited into houses discreetly." She said lightly. She knew he understood what she meant by it when she saw the side of his lip curl up into a smirk. "We came to a certain house over there. The door looked like it's been stabbed with blades all over. Marine tried to call for someone named Jones but like I said, he wasn't there. So we came back here." She said. A light of recognition came on Patches' face when Carrie mentioned the name.

"Do you know him?" She asked. Patches hesitated in answering the young woman. He fiddled with the keys for a split second before going through them again.

"No. Never heard of the man before." He murmured, his face giving away nothing about what he was thinking of then. Carrie obviously knew that the pirate was hiding something but thought that it was pointless to push the answer from him. He was going to get her out of the cell after all; best not to push his patience to its limit. The pirate's eyes lit up as the sound of a click reached both their ears. He swung the door open and motioned for her to get out. Carrie stepped forward hesitantly, wary of any suspicious sound that they might suddenly hear. It was still strange to escape the clutches of Marine by going along with someone who was a part of her own crew. Patches held her hand and began to lead her up the stairs.

"Why?" She asked silently, making Patches stop in his tracks. "Why are you doing this? What do you get out of this?" Patches looked over his shoulder to glance at her before looking back ahead of him.

"Let's just say that I'm not too fond of our beloved captain and I've decided to get my well deserved revenge." He replied evasively. Carrie wondered what had happened between the two but made no move to ask him that. Instead she looked up at the dark sky above them worriedly.

"What if we get caught?" She asked. She could hear Patches chuckle in front of her as he casually pulled her onto the deck.

"I didn't stay behind to guard the ship and spend the rest of my day in a tavern buying bottles of rum for nothing." He replied. Carrie couldn't understand what he said and it was only when she saw the unconscious pirates on the ground and the sacks of junk beside them that she did. She looked back at Patches with amazement and shock in her eyes. He had planned everything from the moment Marine had ordered him to keep an eye on the ship. She would never have believed that of him when she saw the annoying, frustrated look on his face earlier that morning. Patches didn't make a sound, simply leading her away from the ship and onto the silent streets of Port Nassau.

"You know..." Carrie began, letting the man lead her to wherever he had planned on going. Anything should be better than being on the ship with Marine. It had to be. "When you threw me into the brig earlier, I prayed for someone to come and rescue me. But I never thought that they would be answered that quickly, and by someone I never thought would risk his life and his slot in the crew for me." That earned her a chuckle from Patches as he led her to a dark alley and looked at her with a smirk.

"It just goes to show you that life has a sense of humor. You ask it for something and it gives you the help that you would never have expected from it." He said. Carrie stared at him in silence. She never thought that philosophical words like those would come out of the pirate's mouth. Or any other pirate's mouth for that matter. She raised an eyebrow at him in suspicion and couldn't stop herself from taking a step back from him.

"Who are you? _What _are you?" She asked. Patches looked at her in amusement before grabbing her wrist and pulling her further into the darkness of the alley.

"I'm just a simple pirate, doing what they do best; being dishonest." He gave another soft chuckle as he spoke and gave Carrie no chance to reply as he continued leading her away from the dangers of Marine and her crew.


	6. The Life of a Thief

**AN: **Hey there! Thanks to those who read the fic and review. Enjoy this new chapter.

* * *

_**"It feels so good to see them so happy with what I give them. Makes me feel that there's still hope for some of us here in this slowly corrupting world." - Jones Westley**_

**Chapter 6 - The Life of a Thief**

The bright lights that were scattered all over the windows of the houses in their sights made Port Nassau seem much more beautiful than it was. Coupled together with the wonderful smell of the cool sea breeze and the soothing, rhythmic beating of the waves on the hull of the ship made steering the wheel at night all the more worthwhile. Jack stood with his legs apart and hands firmly resting on the wheel; a pirate captain for sure, in all his pride and glory. Everyone on board the Pearl was standing on deck; either looking out towards the town or moving about and working on docking the ship. The men on Jack's crew had been told that they would not get the chance to go to land, but that didn't bother them. They knew Jack's history with Port Nassau and so weren't very eager to risk their lives just to get some entertainment they would be provided with elsewhere. Will, Elizabeth and Norrington walked up the stairs to the helm while the captain shouted out orders to his men. He glanced sideways to where the three stopped and smiled at them.

"You can stay aboard the Pearl under the command of Gibbs." He told them. "Or you can come with me to the tavern in town and drink till you're all dead drunk." He added, looking curiously at Norrington. "I've never seen you drunk have I? That would be an interesting sight to see." Norrington ignored what he said and changed their topic of discussion. He tried his very best to act as if he wasn't a prisoner in a pirate's ship being forced to do their dirty work.

"Are you willing to go to a place where you're not welcome just to do some 'pirate' business Sparrow?" He asked him. "If the stories about you are true, then Port Nassau won't be happy to hear that you've returned to their town." Jack frowned disapprovingly at Norrington and waggled a finger at him.

"Now what did I say about addressing me in the proper title, Commodore? As long as you're a part of my crew on my ship, you follow my orders like everyone else savvy?" Norrington gritted his teeth and growled under his breath.

"Aren't you worried that they'd catch you and send you to the gallows _captain_?" He asked him. Jack waved a hand at him the way he would swat a fly and grinned smugly.

"The stories about me are very true; every single one of them, just so you know. And I know that Port Nassau will not be happy to see me in their lands again. But no worries there Norry. I'm Captain Jack Sparrow. I won't be killed that easily." He said confidently. He turned his head to where his first-mate was and called for him. "Gibbs! Take the helm. Men, lower the anchors! Prepare the longboats!" He shouted. The deck was a bustle of energy as Jack's crew rushed about to do as they were told.

"Gibbs, you know what to do. Be back here tomorrow evenin'." Jack told him before stepping aside to let the portly old man take charge and walking down the stairs with the three people following right behind him. When the pirate noticed this he turned around to face them.

"So, you're all coming along with me?" He asked.

"We're just coming to keep an eye on you Jack." Will told him with his arms crossed. "To make sure that you'll actually plan on sending us back to Port Royal." Elizabeth and Norrington looked at Jack with expressions on their faces that said they agreed with what Will said. With a casual, off-hand shrug, Jack began to move towards one of the boats that was about to be lowered. He stepped in it and held out a hand for Elizabeth to take. The young woman hesitated before taking the hand and stepping into the boat as well. Once all four were settled, Jack's crew lowered the boat into the water and cut off the ropes. Jack tossed the two oars to the two men with a smug smile and a knowing look. Will and Norrington grimly took them from the pirate and began to row the boat towards the shores. Elizabeth sat at the front of the boat with an oil lamp in her hand and held it up as high as she could, shedding light on their way.

The boat they were on moved smoothly and slowly across the placid waters; the two men rowing together carelessly while giving Jack stabbing glares. But even at that speed, they managed to get close to the shore within a few minutes of their departure from the Pearl. Jack leaned back on the back end of the boat lazily while they were on their way and only sat up when he saw that they would get there very soon.

"Lizzie love, I suggest you put out the light now. We wouldn't want anyone noting our arrival now do we?" He whispered softly. Jack's voice, though he tried to make it as soft as possible, was loud enough for everyone on the boat to hear. Elizabeth glanced at Jack over her shoulder before doing exactly as Jack said. After all, being on board with a law breaking pirate willingly wasn't going to help her if they were caught by the guards. Darkness engulfed them with only the light of the moon to guide them on their way. No one dared say a word as they got closer to shore. If they were seen or heard by at least one person, then most likely their venture in Port Nassau won't be an easy one.

Everyone was tense, as if waiting for that one tiny sound; one sign that would let them know that they had been seen. Even Will's and Norrington's rowing were strangely quiet as the two men continued to row. Elizabeth gripped the oil lamp in her hands tightly, anxious to get on land. Jack's eyes were focused now as he peered at the port through the darkness, his whole body just as tense as everyone else's. His hand hovered on the pistol on his holster, prepared to fire as soon as he found out that their cover was ruined. They waited, and couldn't help but relax a little as they bumped onto shore and slightly fell forward in their seats. Jack was the first one to stand and step out of the boat as the cool water soaked the edges of his breeches. Will stepped out as well and helped Jack move the boat on dry land. They placed the oars inside and walked away from the boat as quietly as they could, all the while looking about for any sign of human activity on the docks.

Jack relaxed and was back to his clumsy, drunken, swaggering self as soon as they stepped on the dirty roads of Nassau and were headed for one of the brightly lit windows of a tavern at a much smaller, rougher part of the town. Norrington, Will and Elizabeth followed the pirate behind while still looking about warily. They weren't as sure as Jack was about walking about the town openly. Jack entered a building with a creaking sign that read 'Sailor's Cove' and took a deep breath, taking in the smell of his favorite place to be in, with a grin. Taverns at Tortuga were better and much more livelier, but to most pirates like Jack Sparrow, any tavern is good as long as they serve good rum.

"Ahh...tis' is certainly a pirate's life for me." He sang as he walked to an empty table and sat down on it. "Bring us a couple of drinks over 'ere!" He called out to one of the waitress. The woman stopped walking and looked at Jack who was smiling at her seductively. She smiled back and gave him a wink before walking towards the bar to get their drinks. The other three joined Jack in his table, not looking as happy and eager as Jack was. The rugged pirate thanked the woman as she placed four mugs of rum down on their table and gave her a pinch on the butt before letting her go with a impish grin on his face. Norrington watched everything with a disgusted look on his face. He could not believe that he was sitting in the last place he wanted to be in, with the last people he wanted to be with. Will was more used to a rowdy, uncivilized tavern, being dragged into one before, and gave no reaction to what Jack did as he took a very small sip from his mug. Elizabeth didn't dare touch the mug that was offered to her and used that time to simply look around. Jack was enjoying himself as he took another large gulp from his own mug which had quickly become half-empty. He inspected the three people with him in silence before pushing a mug towards Norrington.

"Come on Norry, try just a little sip. It's not poisoned I promise." He teased, poking him with the glass. "Live a little mate. Relax and enjoy yourself!"

"If I have to partake in this...this..._atrocity _in order to be entertained, then I want to have the most boring life in the whole world." Norrington told him coldly, pushing the glass away from himself. Jack shrugged and drank the rum in the mug like water.

"Whatever you say Norry. But don't blame me when you realize what you're missing out on." He leaned closer to Norrington and whispered in his ear. "See those two beautiful lasses over there? I'm sure they'd love to keep you company if you just let them." Norrington scrunched up his face and moved away from Jack as if he had a contagious disease. Jack couldn't help but laugh at the uncomfortable man as he leaned back in his own chair and drank from the mug. He was beginning to think that having Norrington as his crew by force was the best idea he's had for years. Will watched this exchange with an amused smile on his face and shook his head in disbelief. Elizabeth wasn't as pleased as the men were as she gave dagger glares to the women who looked at Will hungrily.

"Jack? Is that you mate?" Four heads turned around to the source of the voice to find a man as young and as tall as Will grinning down at Jack. The pirate placed his mug on the table and looked at the man before him in consideration, eyeing him from top to bottom carefully. Short, dark red hair framed a lightly tanned, boyish face with caramel brown eyes that twinkled with mischief in a similar manner to Jack's. His grin was wide and revealed straight, white teeth. What caught Jack's attention the most though, was the large bulging pouch tied to the belt that was wrapped around the man's waist.

"Strange. I don't think I know a person who keeps his fortunes hanging loosely along with him." Jack said, raising an eyebrow curiously at the other man. The red haired man looked down at the pouch with a sheepish grin as he scratched the back of his head at the pirate.

"Just got out from a trade mate. It was a pretty delicious offer that even you wouldn't imagine being given if you were me." He told him.

"Really? Do tell." Jack said with interest as he took an empty seat from the other table and offered it to him. The man smiled, accepting the chair from the pirate and settled himself beside him.

"Before we get to that, I want to hear what you've been doing Jack! It's been long since I spoke with you. I thought you had forgotten our promise." He said. Jack pretended to look appalled as he placed a hand to his chest.

"Me? Forget? Never!"

"I heard ye got your Pearl back. Is that true?" Jack's face glowed with love and pride for his beloved ship. He leaned forward towards the man and began telling him the story of how he got the ship back from his mutinous first mate. As he spoke, his hands flailed about exaggeratedly. It was a surprise that he didn't hit anyone with all that arm swinging. The other man listened to Jack's story and laughed heartily from time to time. They were so engrossed with their discussion that they became oblivious to the rest of the people sitting around the table. It was only when Will coughed aloud that the two men turned their attention to them. As if just remembering them at that moment, Jack held one arm open wide as he flamboyantly gestured to the three other occupants of the table.

"Mate, meet the newest addition to me crew. Will Turner, named after his father Bootstrap Bill. Remember him? I'm sure you would. The lad is a splitting image of his father. Next is his lovely bony lass, Elizabeth Swann. Watch out for that one mate; she burns rum." He whispered to Jones, making him stifle a laugh and look at him in amusement. "And last, but not the least, meet Commodore James Norrington." The man's eyes widened at the last name and gaped his mouth open at Jack.

"Are ye daft?! What's a man like him doing with the likes of you?" He asked. Jack smiled at him proudly as he placed his arms behind his head and stretched out his legs under the table.

"We had a little accord with each other and now he's sailing under my command until I bring him and the others to Port Royal." He explained, ignoring the soft snort that came from said Commodore. "If he didn't accept my offer he would have been blown up into tiny pieces." He added. The man closed his mouth but still stared at Jack in awe. Will moved closer to them and nudged Jack's ribs lightly with his elbow. Jack looked at Will in confusion for a moment before his eyes lit up in realization. He turned back to the red haired man and placed an arm around him. "Ah yes, why don't you introduce yourself to them mate? I'm sure you'd love the attention." The man grinned at Jack and stood up from his chair, clearing his throat before speaking in a very dramatic voice.

"Lady, gentlemen, Jones Westley. The smart, suave, sophisticated thief extraordinaire who is always ready to be at your service. It is a pleasure to meet you all." He said, his hands moving in an elegant flourish as he gave them a courteous bow. Elizabeth looked at him in surprise and in confusion as the man sat back down on his chair.

"You're a thief?" She asked. Jack couldn't keep himself from slapping Jones' back and grinning at Will, Norrington and Elizabeth. Jones was drinking his mug of rum when Jack hit him and almost choked on his drink. A bit of rum spilled on the table as Jones punched his chest lightly to recover from his fit. Jack used this as his opportunity to describe his friend's livelihood to the others.

"Aye love, the lad's a lying, cheating, dirty scallywag. He steals money, jewelries, expensive things, all for a living. Goes around the market looking innocent and all then before anyone knows it, he's got something inside his pockets that's not his." Jack explained with a sly grin for Jones. The young man narrowed his eyes at Jack and scoffed at him while crossing his arms.

"What I do isn't as dishonorable as that! I prefer to be called your modern day _Robin Hood_." He said, turning to Elizabeth and the others with a small grin. "I'm sure all three of you educated folks have heard the stories of the legendary scoundrel and his band of Merry Men. That's what I do more or less. I don't know how to use a bow and arrow though, no I'm not that talented." Elizabeth and Will smiled in amusement while Norrington frowned with contempt.

"There is no place in this world for childish, naive ideals. Stealing from the rich and giving to the poor isn't going to compensate for your crimes. Nor would it keep you from being sent to prison if you were captured." He said. Jones chuckled at the Commodore, not at all perturbed by what he said, and gave him a casual shrug.

"I'm not trying to deny that what I do is wrong. In fact, I wholeheartedly agree with you that stealing is not a very nice occupation for any good man. But not everyone lives in mansions or castles with servants, maids, gourmet dishes and the like. Life for some of us is hard. And so I try my best to steal to help keep myself alive, together with those who need it more than those stuck-up pricks."

"Do you really steal then give what you've taken to the needy?" Elizabeth asked him. Jones looked at her and nodded in reply.

"Yes. Usually I give it to the church so they can hand it out to the poor themselves. But sometimes I like watching the faces on those people, especially the children, as I give gold, clothes and food to them. It feels so good to see them so happy with what I give them. Makes me feel that there's still hope for some of us here in this slowly corrupting world." He told her before taking another gulp from his mug. Elizabeth could see bright sparkles dancing in his eyes as he spoke and smiled for him. Though it was not so evident in the expression on his face, she could tell how happy he was, doing something for others even when it meant risking his own reputation and his own survival. Jack smiled at Jones as he spoke and called a waitress over to order another round of drinks.

"So Jones, tell me about this offer you got. I'm curious as to what it is that's so important that someone would hand over that much money for it." Jack told him, gesturing to the pouch hanging on Jones' waist as soon as the waitress he called for moved away. The delight in Jones faded as Jack spoke of the deal he made. He untied the strings that attached his pouch to his belt and placed it on the table in silence. Jack took the bag in his hands and weighed it. It was very heavy, and was filled to the brim with shiny gold coins when he looked inside. A look of amazement passed through Jack's face as he tried to guess how much money was inside. He gave the pouch back to Jones with a considering look directed at him. He wasn't looking very relaxed and at ease now.

"What was the deal about?" He asked him. Before Jones could open his mouth to reply, they all heard the sound of a man barging into the room loudly. The group turned their heads together with the rest of the occupants of the tavern and watched as a man standing by the door held his knees, trying to catch his breath. He looked up with fear and panic etched on his face and rushed to a table where a couple of men were sitting around at. He whispered something to them in rushed, hushed tones before running out of the tavern without another word. The men who had been relaxed suddenly became tense and a bit anxious as they all stood up from their chairs. One threw a couple of silver on the table before following the others out into the night in a hurry. People in the tavern were looking at the door curiously but began going back to their own businesses after a while. After all, it wasn't their problem so why should they care?

Jack and the others watched everything happen then stared at each other in silence once the men were gone. Elizabeth and Will looked at Jones, thinking that the thief probably had an idea of what happened back there. Jones shook his head at them then brushed back his dark red hair with his calloused fingers, looking just as puzzled as the rest. Jack began playing with the beads in his beards with a thoughtful look on his face. Norrington on the other hand frowned as he kept his gaze on the door.

"...perhaps we should leave _Sailor's Cove_ and go to sleep now." Jack muttered as he stood up from his chair. "Wouldn't want to waste our time by accidentally falling into this mess after all." He added when everyone looked at him in surprise.

"What about your so-called pirate business?" Commodore Norrington asked him with sarcastic concern. Jack blinked at Norrington then gave him an off-hand shrug as he dropped a few coins on the table for the mugs they drank.

"That can wait until tomorrow morning. It's not safe to make business while you're incredibly drunk." He said with a grin. The waitress walked up to their table, bringing with her their mugs of rum, and frowned disappointingly when she saw Jack out of his chair. The rogue pirate went up to the young woman, whispering something seductive in her ear while playing with a strand of her black hair at the same time. He stepped back afterwards then began walking out of the tavern, leaving a flustered, giggling waitress standing alone. Will, Elizabeth and Norrington stood up from their own chairs and were about to follow Jack out of the tavern when Jones caught up to them quickly.

"Wait! You lot don't have to look for an inn. My house is big enough for everyone to stay in for the night." He told them. Elizabeth politely shook her head at him.

"No, you don't have to do that for us. We don't want to trouble you or anything like that..." She said.

"Nonsense! It would be my pleasure." Jones said as he smiled brightly and grabbed Will's and Jack's arms, forcefully dragging them away. The two men were startled and didn't immediately think of trying to struggle away from the man's grasp. Norrington and Elizabeth had no choice but to follow them out of the tavern with Jones leading all of them through the dark streets. Jack recovered from his stunned moment first and began to pull his arm back. Their walk slowed down as Jack made the thief stop.

"Before I agree to going to your place I have one important question to ask. Are there any rum in your house?" He asked with a serious expression on his face. Elizabeth narrowed her eyes at the pirate while Norrington rolled his. Jones chuckled and grinned at Jack.

"I have enough to last ye through the night!" Jack's face brightened as he walked ahead of Jones with an eager step. His drunken, swaggering walk was very evident as he swayed slightly from left to right. On land, it didn't seem as natural as it did on the ship.

"Well what are we waiting for? Let us be off then!" He said, pointing a finger at the road ahead of them. The others looked at each other and followed the pirate quickly before they lost sight of him. As they walked away from the rougher part of the town, they began to see fewer people walking about the streets. While most of the windows near the tavern were lit up brightly, the windows in the large houses lined up against each other on the street were as black as night. Elizabeth moved closer to Will's side as she peered through the shadows and the dark corners of the alleyways cautiously. Norrington's body became tense as he looked everywhere with a suspicious glance. Only Jones and Jack seemed relaxed and casual, walking side by side as if they were simply passing through a peaceful and beautiful road.

"Excuse me Mr. Westley..." Will began.

"Jones." The thief interrupted, glancing over his shoulder but still walking at the same time. "Call me Jones, please. I feel like an old man when I'm addressed that way." He explained with a grin that only heightened his young, boyish features. Will gave a curt nod that he understood then spoke again.

"Jones, I hope you don't mind me asking, but are you a noble?" He asked. "There is something that catches my attention with the way you carry yourself and the way you speak to others. You seem like someone who wasn't always a poor thief living in poverty." Jones gave a soft sigh before he answered Will's question.

"Well...I used to be noble. Believe it or not, my family was once one of the richest families here in Nassau. But it all fell apart when my father suddenly died of an incurable illness. My brothers-we were 4 in the family-fought against each other on who would receive the biggest amount of the inheritance. We couldn't find any will from the old man, so there was no certainty on how much was given to each of us. They ended up killing each other; leaving only me, the youngest son, as the sole heir of the Westley riches. Unfortunately, they used every damn coin during their little fight and left none for me or my mother who died a few years after that incident. I've lived like this ever since." He said.

"I'm sorry I asked." Will said as he looked down at the floor sadly and regrettably. Jones shook his head and smiled at the blacksmith. Then he looked at the others with the same, reassuring expression on his face.

"It's alright, you don't have to be sorry for asking. Actually, I like the way I live now. It lets me worry less about the money I possess and the chances of it getting stolen. And besides..." He stopped walking and stared at a middle-class house with a door that had many tiny slits on it. The others followed and looked at the plain looking house with surprise; all except for Jack who had been there before. Jones failed to suppress an amused grin as he watched their reactions. "I have enough to keep me alive and living a lot better than the rest."

"You live here?" Will asked incredulously. Jones chuckled at him and slapped his back in a friendly manner.

"Didn't think a thief would live a life as good as this did you? Well thief or no, this is my home. There are a lot of vacant rooms where you can all sleep in though they're not exactly clean. I hope you don't mind that." He explained as he walked closer to the house. Everyone else followed the thief until they all caught sight of the shadow of a form at the door. Jack and Jones immediately unsheathed their swords at the same time before running towards the stranger. The shadowed form's head shot up at the sound and glanced at them before running away from them. Jones stopped at the front of his door to inspect it while Jack went around the corner to where the man ran to. Elizabeth, Will and Norrington ran up to Jones who breathed a soft sigh of relief as soon as they were behind him.

"Good. He didn't get inside the house." He said as he inspected the door knob. It was still closed and locked with no sign of being tampered with. Jones looked up from what he was doing and saw Jack walking back from where he disappeared to. "Did you catch whoever it was that was here? Did you see his face?" He asked. With a small frown, Jack shook his head.

"I lost sight of him before I could see who it was. Do you know what he was doing at your home?"

"I don't know...he probably tried to trespass into the house and steal something but failed when we appeared. I'm not the only thief here after all." Jones replied a bit reluctantly. He wasn't convinced that it was the reason for a stranger to come to his home at an ungodly hour but it was a possible reason. Jack didn't seem to believe what the thief said as well but waved a casual arm at that. Will, Elizabeth and Norrington all looked at each other in silence. None of them knew what to make of what happened earlier. After a short moment of silence, the pirate yawned and stretched out his arms above him.

"Well after all that excitement I think we all deserve to relax and enjoy ourselves." He said, turning his gaze to his friend. "Come now mate, open up the door and lead me to your rum stock. I need my rum now." The worried frown on Jones' face disappeared and was replaced with a small, amused smile. He slowly shook his head in disbelief before he went up to the door and began to unlock it with the key he kept in his pocket.

"Of course. Nothing can keep our pirate from getting what he wants." He teased slightly as he pushed open the door and gestured for the others to come in. "I'll show you to your rooms first. They're all in the second floor. I think a good night's rest will help rejuvenate everyone."

* * *

Carrie quickly shot up from the small, uncomfortable bed she was lying on at the sound of the door creaking open. Her hand fell on the small dagger she got from Patches that lay on her side as she narrowed her eyes at the door. Whatever happened, she wasn't going to let anyone push her around anymore. She learned a few tips in fighting from Vanessa and she was pretty confident in using them. What she didn't expect was the sudden flood of bright light that entered through the door as it opened wider. She squinted her eyes and held the dagger in front of her defensively. She couldn't see anything as she tried to get her eyes to adjust to the light but she was ready to fling it around as soon as someone tries to get close to her. 

"You could have gotten killed if someone else entered this room." A voice spoke in front of her. "You do know that there is such a thing as a gun. No one would need to get close to you if they had one." Carrie blew out the breath she didn't realize she held as she became familiar with the person talking. Once her eyes adjusted to the brightness she saw Patches sitting down on a chair, panting for breath. She raised an eyebrow at him curiously.

"What happened to you?"

"It's nothing." He replied, taking another deep breath as he finally recovered most of himself. "I went out to find a friend who can help us and almost got caught by a few guards that were patrolling the town." He explained. He sat up straight then wiped away the sweat that was going down his face with his hand. He looked at Carrie as he rested his head on his arms that were propped up on the head of the chair. "Did anyone come in here while I was gone?"

"No." Carrie replied as she settled in a more relaxed position on the bed. "I saw a few of Marine's crew running around the streets and the alleyways when I looked out the window. They were looking for me but they haven't thought of entering an inn yet."

"Let's hope it stays that way." Patches muttered as he gave a small yawn. "Toss me that weapon will ya? I'm not takin' any chances with the captain an' the crew still looking around. Not to mention that we'll all be much safer if it was in my hands than in yours." He added. Carrie's face turned a slight reddish color as she unconsciously loosened her grip on the dagger. She narrowed her eyes at Patches but the pirate ignored her as he held out his hand to her expectantly. With a soft defeated sigh, she threw the blade towards Patches, who caught it expertly in his left hand. She watched as he made the weapon disappear with a complicated, extravagant flourish of his hand. Only a fool wouldn't see that the pirate hid the dagger somewhere inside him that was easily accessible to him.

"Are you sure about this? Maybe we should find a ship that's leaving port as soon as possible and get in without anyone noticing. It's night and it's still dark so nobody will notice us." Carrie suggested. She frowned when Patches gave a short laugh.

"Ha! It's unlikely that we'll get into a ship without attractin' notice. I helped ye escape from a very dangerous and well known pirate in the Caribbean seas, lass. Sharpshooter Marine didn't get all that fame and reputation with a dull and empty head." He said. "The first thing she's gonna do as soon as she finds out we're both missing will be to block all means of passage away from Nassau. Then she'll make her men search the whole town for any sign of us. They'll search at every nook and cranny that they can find." Carrie bit her lip nervously and wrung the sheets that lay on top of her legs.

"Then what are we supposed to do? We'll be spotted sooner or later if we don't do something."

"Don't ye worry your little head over this. All ye 'ave to do is keep quiet and do exactly as I say." Patches said, giving another soft yawn. "First order I'll give ye is to go to sleep. You'll need all the energy you can get tomorrow. We're going to be doing a lot of running." He said.

"Where are you going to sleep?" Carrie asked in concern. Patches grunted and turned his head away from Carrie. Soon afterwards she could hear him snoring softly, indicating that he was fast asleep. She gave a soft, weary sigh as she lied back down on the bed and allowed herself to fall into a dreamless sleep.


	7. Timing is the Key

**_"Well love, you're fortunate enough to be saved by the Captain Jack Sparrow. Not something I would ever have planned on, but a good thing all the same so it bodes no trouble for either of us." - Jack Sparrow_**

**Chapter 7 - Timing is the Key**

"Good morning Lizzie. Did you have a good sleep?" Jack asked as he, Jones and Norrington turned their heads to the side and watched Elizabeth enter the kitchen. The young woman looked refreshed and clean after taking a quick and warm bath courtesy of Jones. She smiled at them all and nodded.

"Yes, I did. Thank you for letting us stay here Jones." She said. The thief smiled and waved a casual hand at her.

"No need to thank me, my dear. Any friend of Jack's is a friend of mine." He was about to say more when he caught sight of Will walking towards them behind Elizabeth. He gave a boyish grin at them and stood up from his seat to offer it to Elizabeth. "Come over and sit down. I made something for breakfast. It's not as good as what you probably eat back in your home I expect, but it's good enough to keep you alive for the day." He told her, gesturing to the plate he set in front of the chair. Elizabeth gave a grateful smile and took the seat offered. Will walked towards an empty chair beside Elizabeth and sat down on it. Norrington sat uncomfortably across Elizabeth while Jack relaxed in his chair at the Commodore's side. While Elizabeth and Will ate their breakfast, which consisted of plain but good eggs and bacon, they conversed with each other.

"What news did you hear on the streets Jones?" Jack asked. "Did they mention anything about that commotion last night?" Jones pressed his hands on the table and leaned towards the occupants with a serious expression on his face.

"I went out of the house earlier and spoke with my usual acquaintances, in case you were wondering." He said to the newcomers. "Like I was saying, I went out to see what news there was, and heard a very interesting one. It seems that those men we saw back at the_ Sailor's Cove _last night were part of a crew. I couldn't get a name for the ship they were on though. No one knew what ship they came from either. Understandable since most commoners here in Nassau don't bother knowing every ship that comes to port. Anyway, there are rumors spreading that one of their own men helped a prisoner escape from their ship while everyone else was out. Now all of the men that are part of the crew are roaming around town, looking for these two people." Elizabeth looked at Will and Norrington with a worried expression on her face then stared at Jones with new interest.

"Was there any mention of what they looked like? Do you know where these two people could possibly hide?" She asked. Jones grimaced at her with an upsetting look.

"No one but those of the men on the ship's crew know who they're looking for and they're not asking help from anyone either. It's probably better and safer that way for both parties involved." He added the last part with a glance at them. "I can't think of any specific place the two could hide in. Nassau's a big enough city for two unnoticeable people to avoid being seen. They could be anywhere from taverns, to inns, to brothels even; if they're that desperate to escape. But why on earth would you want to look for these two people? Do you...know who they are?" He asked, looking specifically at Elizabeth. The young woman looked down at her plate sadly when she didn't hear the answer she hoped for from Jones. Her attention was suddenly caught when she felt Will's comforting hand on her shoulder a few moments later.

"Elizabeth please calm down. You are not even sure if this person who escaped is the young girl named Carrie. We can't take such careless chances like that and risk letting people know that we are looking for them." Will reasoned out to her. "We'll find her soon, don't worry. Just stay calm and keep your spirits up." He said reassuringly. Elizabeth gave him a small smile of gratitude and held his hand tightly.

"Thank you Will." She said as they gazed lovingly at each other's eyes. They were so focused and intent on each other that they forgot the other three occupants of the room, who were beginning to become uncomfortable. Jones tried to loosen the collar of his shirt as he coughed politely and began walking towards the exit.

"I'll be out, doing business if you need me." He murmured softly, trying not to disturb the moment between the couple. He looked at Norrington and raised his finger at him. "Commodore, sir, please stay in this house with Mr. Turner and Miss Swann. I do not want the three of you leaving this house while things are still a bit messy out there. I will be back soon so you have no need to worry." Norrington frowned but gave a curt nod of understanding and agreement to Jones. The thief turned his gaze to Jack who was standing up as silently as he could.

"I've delayed the things I need to do for too long now. I shall be out doing my pirate business and will be back within the day. Norry, keep the whelp and his bony lass from doing anything stupid." He said to him, earning an angry frown from said person. With an amused grin, he went ahead of Jones and waved goodbye at them once he was at the door. "Ta mates! And Will...I do warn ya, don't be too hasty. Wouldn't want to get Lizzie pregnant before the wedding and the honeymoon and all." He teased. "That would certainly ruin the good relationship you have with her father." Will blinked as he realized how long he was staring at Elizabeth and blushed a deep crimson red while casting a small glare at the pirate who had closed the door at that instant. Jones shook his head in disbelief and chuckled as began closing the door.

"I'm off then. Take care now. And remember; no leaving the house." He closed the back door to his home and left all three people sitting in silence. Norrington stood up from his chair and walked out of the kitchen towards the sitting room when he couldn't remove the uncomfortable feeling that had settled in him.

"I think I saw some books in one of the shelves in the sitting room that I might be interested in. I shall leave the two of you alone then. And as ordered by that pirate and his friend," He spat the word pirate as if it was something disgusting. "You are not to leave this house unless they say so." He disappeared around the corner before he could see the angry glare of Will's face. The tinge of red on Elizabeth's own slightly flustered face was slowly fading as the minutes passed. She looked at Will, who looked back at her in return with an embarrassed smile on his face.

"Perhaps we should follow Norrington's example and spent our time reading or doing something that's more worthwhile than sitting around and staring at each other." Will said. Elizabeth smiled and nodded as they stood up together. They held hands and went to the sitting room where they saw the other man already sitting on an armchair with a book in hand. Norrington looked up from the pages when he heard the sound of footsteps and returned to his reading when he saw them. Will and Elizabeth let go of each other when they were out of the kitchen and began to roam around the house with no purpose.

It was going to be a long day for them.

* * *

"Why do I have to stay behind?! I can go around the streets without anyone knowing who I am. I can hide myself very well for your information." Carrie whined as she watched Patches check on the weapons he had with him. "You said I had to go to sleep last night because we were going to do a lot of running today. What happened to that?" The pirate ignored her as he hid the dagger inside his clothes and began to walk towards the door. The young woman stood up from the bed and caught up to the pirate with long quick strides. Before she could reach out to him, he twisted around and held the blade in front of her so quickly that Carrie gave a short scream of surprise. 

"You stay here for now while I go and find a way to get us out of here. It's to dangerous for you to come out now when they're all looking for you." Patches told her, putting away the dagger when she was no longer moving. "I'm not taking any chances now. Not when I've gone this far." He added. He saw the look of fear and uncertainty on Carrie's face and couldn't suppress a sigh that came out of his mouth. He patted her head comfortingly like one would to do a young child or a small pet as his gaze on her softened. "It's important that you don't show yourself to Marine or to her men no matter what happens to me. If they find out where you're hiding I would not have the strength to protect you and help you escape." He explained to her. Carrie still had a frown on her face but the look on her eyes became more understanding and resigned.

"Alright. I'll keep out of sight from Marine or her crew. I promise." She said. Patches gave her a curt nod and went out of the room, giving her one last look before closing the door quietly. Carrie could hear his loud boot steps fading away as he climbed down the stairs to the restaurant downstairs. She moved towards the window and watched the pirate's form slowly mesh in with the crowd that grew larger as the sun moved higher into the clear blue sky. Everyone had begun to go about their daily morning activities and gave the streets new life. Carrie stared with glazed, hypnotic eyes at the people walking about the streets until her eyes caught the reflection of something shiny. She blinked, trying to restore her eyesight from the shock of the blinding light. She realized that she had been looking at a man who was selling jewelries.

Her fingers tapped softly but continuously on the windowsill as she looked at more things before her. She bit her lip as the silence in the room she was in began to make her feel uncomfortable. She turned her back from the window and looked around at the room she was confined in. It was very small, with nothing she could see that would keep her boredom in check. She closed her eyes and gave out a soft sigh as she counted silently in her head. When she opened them again she saw a rat scurry across the floor towards a small mouse hole at one end of the room. That was the last straw for Carrie. She made a run for the door and stopped as she grabbed a hold of the doorknob. Patches' face came quickly into her mind, that and a wave of guilt.

"I promised him I would keep out of sight from Marine and the crew. I'll still be doing that even if I did go out of this room. I never said anything about not leaving after all." She said convincingly to herself. With one last look at the room she was in, Carrie turned the doorknob and went out into the empty corridor. She looked from right to left to make sure no one was around before moving downstairs to where a large crowd was growing. She moved meekly past patrons and waitresses alike, acting as inconspicuous as she could while trying to make up with what she was wearing. So far to her great relief, no one paid her any certain notice. Her confidence in herself grew as she walked out of the inn. She straightened her back and put on a smug and proud face.

_This isn't so hard. I can stay away from those guys easily! I'll come back to the room before Patches even knows I left it._

She began roaming about the marketplace, looking at items for sale and admiring some of the women who walked about wearing beautiful, elegant dresses. She wished she could find some more suitable clothes to wear in that time. She was beginning to feel out of place in her plain shirt and faded jeans. She stopped at a certain store whose glass windows displayed a few well made dresses and looked at them. They all seemed very plain and simple, yet it was still better than her own dirty, sweaty clothes. Her lips formed a small frown as she regretted not asking Patches for any money. The pirate was a pirate so he should have some money to spare. While she was gazing dreamily at the diplay on the window, she didn't notice a man running towards her in a rush. Neither did the man, because a few moments later the two found themselves on the ground in a scrambled heap.

"Hey watch where you're going!" Carrie shouted angrily as she tried to untangle herself from the man. Once she was free, she stood up before him and brushed off the dirt on her clothes. She turned her head down to face the man and was about to open her mouth to berate him more when she saw who exactly it was that had knocked her over. Her face paled and she began to back away from him. She couldn't place a name to the pirate was but his familiar face was definitely one she saw in Marine's crew. The man looked up and widened his eyes when he saw Carrie. He tried to scramble up and grab her but Carrie was too quick and ran away before the man could catch her.

Her feet had no direction as she ran away from the pirate. All she thought of was to get away and hide as soon as she could. Her head frantically swiveled from left to right, trying to find a place where she wouldn't be caught. She could hear the sound of her pursuer's footsteps right behind her. She drew short ragged breaths and closed her eyes, willing her whole body to move despite the lack of oxygen. She pushed past people and jumped over obstacles that were barring her way but she didn't care if she was making a scene. All she thought of then was to run away from the pirate.

Her foot caught a small crack on the ground and toppled her off balance. She flailed her arms around, trying to get her balance back but failed and saw the ground nearing her. She landed on the dusty ground with a loud thud and groaned as she rubbed her sore torso. She looked over her shoulder and widened her eyes when she saw the pirate a few meters away from her. She tried to scramble up from the ground but gave a sudden loud cry of pain as she felt a boot pressing her down to the ground. She smelled the putrid stench of the man above her as he leaned closer to her while still trying to regain his normal breathing.

"I've got you now you dirty, wench." He spat with a lewd grin on his face. He pulled her up and held her wrists firmly in his to keep her from running away. "I still have a few hours to spare. Why don't I spend it by having my way with you? I'm sure the captain won't mind it. It won't ruin her goals after all." He whispered to her ear. Carrie felt a cold, chilling shiver run down her spine as she felt his breath on her ear. She struggled frantically, using her hands and legs to try and push him off. The pirate was unaffected by her attempt and simply dragged her towards a dark and empty alleyway. He pulled her harshly and slammed her against the wall. Tears began to fall from Carrie's eyes as she felt the man's hands begin to roam all over her body.

"Get off me you bastard! Help! Somebody help me please!"

"No one's going to help ye lass." The man hissed, an evil grin growing on her face. "It's just you and me 'ere in this tiny little corner." He gave a soft menacing chuckle then stopped short and widened his eyes in shock. Carrie's tear-strained eyes looked at him in confusion as she easily pushed him away. The pirate's eyes rolled to the back of his head and he fell down to the ground unconscious. As the man's body fell, she saw another standing right behind the first. The alleyway was too dark for her to see who it was but her savior moved closer and spoke with a familiar tone to his voice.

"Are ye alright love? He didn't go too far did he?" He asked. Carrie shook her head as she wiped the tears from her eyes and regulated her breathing. She watched the man before her look down at the pirate and prodded him lightly with his feet. "It was a good thing I saw the scoundrel drag you over here and it's a good thing he didn't put up much of a fight. He was a bloody idiot for thinking that no one was going to help a pretty little lass like you." He said, not really speaking to her. Carrie bit her lip nervously and looked at her mysterious savior as she smoothed the creases on her shirt.

"Thank you sir...for saving my life back there. But...who are you?" She asked. The man chuckled and motioned for her to step out of the alleyway and back into the street where the light was brighter. Carrie moved ahead then stopped after a few paces and turned around to watch the shadows disappear from the man. She first took note of the tricorn hat perched atop his black, beaded mass of hair. Next she noticed his dark brown eyes, rimmed with khol, that twinkled mischievously as he glanced at her. His attire and accessories were unique; something one of a kind that not anyone would dare mimic. As more and more of the man was revealed, doubts of who the man was vanished. She opened her mouth and didn't bother lowering her voice as the shock of meeting the man before her overwhelmed her.

"You're Captain Jack Sparrow!!" Almost every head near them turned to their direction. Some of those ignored them but others were looking at Jack and whispering worriedly to each other. At the same time, a guard passed by and heard Carrie's revelation. He reached for his whistle and blew on it as loudly as he could. Then he took out his sword from its sheath and waved it at them.

"Hey you! Stop in the name of the law." Jack cursed silently as he narrowed his eyes at Carrie, who had just realized what she had done and was smiling at Jack nervously. The pirate rolled his eyes and gave a weary sigh as he grabbed Carrie's wrist and dragged her away from the guard who was catching up to them. The young woman staggered briefly before moving her legs in sync with Jack's. She let the pirate lead her through alleyways and roads, past houses, inns, stores and the like. Fortunately for them no one tried to stop them from running away. Before Carrie could comprehend what was happening, Jack suddenly pulled her inside a door of a small house and pressed himself against the wall as they listened to the footsteps of the guard running. The guard who was chasing them stopped running and took a moment's pause right beside the place they hid in. Carrie was breathing hard from their run but Jack narrowed his eyes at her warningly. She had no choice but to cover her mouth and try to hold her breath for as long as she could.

The guard didn't leave right away as he looked around him slowly, trying to guess where the two convicts had run off to. Both Jack and Carrie stayed still and tried their best not to breathe too loudly as they waited for the man to give up on them or run off to a different direction. A few minutes later they heard the sound of footsteps fading away to their relief. Jack peered at the corner and watched the guard walk away towards another part of the street. Carrie blew away the breath that she had held in and sighed while her shoulders sagged as she relaxed.

"Thank goodness we're saved..."

"Not for long if we don't move now." Jack replied, looking at her calculatingly. Carrie turned to face Jack and bit her lip nervously. She had no idea what the pirate planned on doing to her and was not very eager to know. Jack stayed silent for a few minutes as he inspected the woman before him. She was wearing clothes that he had never seen before in his whole life. He was sure that the style wasn't from some foreign country because he's been to most of them. He especially took note of the plain white rubber shoes Carrie wore on her feet. Over all, her clothes looked very dirty and something that she had worn for a long while. Even the way she spoke and the way she moved spoke differently of the culture she had grown up with. Possibly someone who was not part of this world. A thought clicked in his mind as his memory tried to nag him about something.

"You wouldn't happen to be..._what was that name she mentioned again_?" Jack muttered as he racked his brain for what Elizabeth had called the young friend who was kidnapped. He had not bothered to remember the name because he had thought that he would not get involved in that. He growled angrily under his breath as he tried to come up with a familiar name. Carrie tilted her head to the side as she stared at Jack Sparrow in confusion.

"Uh...I'm Carrie Lockheart." She said. A look of recognition came across Jack's face and he clapped his hands together in triumph.

"Aha! **Carrie**! That's the name. It's a good thing I remembered it." Carrie was still in a state of stunned shock so she couldn't react to what Jack said. The pirate looked at her from top to bottom, nodding to himself in satisfaction. "Yes. You must be her. Well love, you're fortunate enough to be saved by the Captain Jack Sparrow. Not something I would ever have planned on, but a good thing all the same so it bodes no trouble for either of us." He said. "I'm sure the whelp and his bony lass will be pleased to hear that you're here, safe and sound." Carrie's head shot up at the last sentence. She looked at the pirate in surprise.

"Are you talking about Will and Elizabeth?" Jack grinned and nodded to her in reply. Carrie couldn't help but close her eyes and sigh in relief. She didn't have the time to think about them after all the running and hiding, but she had been worried about what happened to them after the ship she was on left, with Will, Elizabeth and the Commodore tied up to the mast of a burning ship. "I'm glad they're alright. Did you save them?" She asked. Jack puffed out his chest and gave her a grin that was filled with lots of pride.

"Of course I saved them. I even let 'ol Norry get into my ship before theirs was blasted into ashes." He explained. Carrie stepped closer to Jack and looked up at him with shiny, hopeful eyes. Jack was taken aback by the sudden movement and instinctively brought up his hands in front of him defensively and warily. He had become quite used to women trying to hit him and expected the woman before him to try it as well.

"Where are they? Are they with you? Can you take me to them?" She asked, moving closer to him with each question. Jack stepped away from her with his hands still raised defensively. When he was sure that Carrie wouldn't hit him, he let them fall down to his sides. But the wariness on his face never disappeared.

"Aye I guess it wouldn't hurt if I take you to them. If it will make the bony lass shut up about it, then by all means come." He told her. Carrie couldn't help but squeal loudly with delight. She lunged herself at Jack and gave him a grateful and very tight hug. Jack caught her and struggled to keep them both from falling down by the force of Carrie's 'attack'. After a while Jack picked up both of Carrie's arm with his fingers as if afraid they were going to bite him and separated himself from the young woman. "You can stop now lass. I know I'm that irresistible to women such as yourself but I do need my personal space." He said. With an embarrassed flush rising on her face, Carrie stepped further back from Jack and looked at the ground apologetically.

"Sorry..."

"It's alright love. Now follow me and make sure you don't get us spotted...again." He said. Carrie narrowed her eyes at Jack and pursed her lips but didn't retort to what he said and simply followed him out of their hiding place.

* * *

The sound of Jack making a noisy entrance from downstairs reached Elizabeth's ears as she inspected one of the paintings hanging on the wall. Wondering what the pirate was doing, she went to the top of the stairs and made her way down. She saw Jack entering the sitting room and making his way towards the kitchen. What shocked her was the next person who came into the house. She widened her eyes in shock then smiled brightly as she rushed down the steps. She ran past Will and Norrington and threw her arms around the other woman. 

"Carrie! I'm so glad you're safe and unharmed." She cried. Carrie hugged Elizabeth back and smiled just as brightly.

"I'm glad you're safe and unharmed too Liz. I was worried when the ship I was on was leaving yours. Did Jack really save you from that?" She asked. Elizabeth thinned her lips as she remembered that day. She gave a quick glance at the kitchen where Will and Norrington went to in order to speak with Jack. She narrowed her eyes in that direction before looking at Carrie.

"He did. But he did it with a price. After all, a good man or not, he is still a pirate. Although..." She placed a hand to her mouth and leaned closer to the other woman. "I think he is just doing that to keep up his image and reputation as a feared pirate." She whispered. Carrie covered her mouth as she tried to suppress a giggle that wanted to bubble from her. Elizabeth smiled and chuckled along with her. When their cheery fit was finished, Elizabeth dragged her towards the armchairs and made her sit down on them. "So tell me Carrie. What happened to you after we were separated?" She asked.

While the women chatted together, the men at the kitchen had a chat of their own. When Jack came into the kitchen he quickly grabbed a hold of a bottle of rum that was stacked in one of the cupboards and downed half of it in one gulp. Will and Norrington entered and saw Jack sitting on a chair with his feet on top of the table. There was already an empty bottle lying beside his feet and a couple more that were filled on the opposite side. Jack had one bottle in his hand and was drinking that one presently. Norrington rolled his eyes and narrowed them at the pirate.

"Must you always drink that vile concoction? Surely even pirates have limits on their dosage of alcohol." He said. Jack narrowed his eyes at Norrington in return as he took another gulp at his bottle.

"I take rum whenever and wherever I please mate. To me, there are no such thing as limits. You're not_ worried_ about my health are you? That's interesting, considering it's coming from someone like you." He said with an amused grin on his face. Norrington wrinkled his nose as if smelling something bad and looked disgustedly at Jack.

"I was simply asking. I don't care even if you drown yourself in that alcoholic drink. In fact, I would feel much better if you did." He said.

"Well then, 'tis a shame I'm not going to drown myself in it. Can't have you feeling better now can we?" Jack replied blatantly, waving his bottle around. Will sighed and shook his head in disbelief. If he allowed their fight to go on, he might just have to keep Norrington from going at Jack's throat. He stepped forward and moved so that he was standing in between the pirate and the Commodore, breaking their heated glares.

"So Jack," He began. "How did you end up rescuing that young woman?" Jack's attention drifted to Will as the young blacksmith spoke but he still made quick glances at Norrington's side. The Commodore contented himself with sitting down on another chair before the table and listening in to the conversation.

"Well I was out doing pirate business as I mentioned to you earlier. I finished it quite quicker than I had expected and was on my way back here when I caught sight of a young woman being dragged away by a man towards an alley. I went to see what the problem was and heard said woman scream for help. I knocked out the man, saved the lass then brought her here when she asked me to." He explained in short sentences before drinking again. Will listened and looked at Jack worriedly.

"Do you think she's the prisoner who escaped from that ship last night? She was being held prisoner on Marine's ship too. It sounds too much of a coincidence for her and that prisoner not to be the same person." He asked. The pirate looked at Will for a few moments then stared at the bottle in consideration.

"Perhaps. It's possible that she is the person those men are seeking. Well there's only one way to find out." He stood up, placing the emptied bottle beside the other one and taking a new one before walking back into the sitting room. Will and Norrington followed him out and saw Elizabeth and Carrie sitting on the armchairs and talking to each other. They stopped to look at the newcomers as they moved closer to them. "Ladies," Jack began as he made a slightly mocking bow. "Permission to join in your conversation? We would like to ask a few questions to Miss Carrie." He said. Elizabeth ignored the mockery in Jack's actions and nodded courteously to him.

"Of course you may join us Jack. Carrie was just explaining to me what happened when she arrived in Port Nassau. I'm sure you want to know about that as well." She told them. The men settled around and listened as Carrie continued from the point where she and Elizabeth stopped.

"Let's see where was I? Ah yes. Marine told me that I was supposed to come with her and so this hooded man and I followed her through the streets. She was trying to look for this man named Jones who strangely lived in this very house. When we got here the man wasn't at home so they brought me back to the ship below deck at the brig. That night, Patches, that pirate I was telling you about Liz, came and made the guard drink himself into unconsciousness. He released me from the brig and dragged me all the way to this small, discreet inn where he told me to stay while he went out looking for a way to help me escape. I didn't want to stay cooped up in a small place so I decided to get out of that inn and roam around town. That was when one of the pirates from Marine's ship saw me and dragged me to an alleyway." She finished.

"And that was when I gallantly came to her rescue!" Jack declared proudly as he lied down sideways on the armchair. His feet were propped up on one arm, his head on the other, while his hand hung at his side with the bottle of rum firmly gripped in his hand. Everyone ignored him as they focused their attentions on what Carrie just told them.

"Jones? You mean Marine was looking for Jones?" Will asked. Carrie nodded in reply. All four heads turned to Jack who was drinking his bottle of rum. When Jack was done drinking he noticed their stares and looked at all of them in confusion. He looked down at himself to see if there was anything wrong then felt his face for any suspicious or strange bumps. When he was sure that everything was perfectly fine, he raised his eyebrow at them.

"What are you all staring at me for?"

"Jones spoke of a deal that he had agreed to when we met him last night at _Sailor's Cove_. Since Marine was looking for him before, she must have been the person he made an accord with. Aren't you worried about that Jack?" Will explained. Jack closed his eyes and gave a nonchalant wave at the young blacksmith.

"Will, me mate's a thief. He's not exactly one to choose his clients for their good morals. Whatever he does, it's for the sake of his business and nothing else. It is possible that Marine knows Jones and is asking him for some thieving advice or assistance. But what does that matter to me? As long as they are not plotting against me I could care less." He replied, his arms making exaggerated movement as he spoke. Elizabeth narrowed her eyes at Jack.

"You would not care, but I do. Carrie is my friend and I don't care if Marine is supposed to be her best friend. I will not let her get Carrie." She said determinedly. "She is plotting something, I am sure of that. And from the way she's treating her, I don't think Marine is planning on being kind to Carrie." Jack looked at Elizabeth with half-closed eyes then gave a weary sigh.

"_Must_ you always poke your nose into other people's business love?" He groaned, stressing on the first word. That earned him a glare from the young woman. Jack wasn't fazed by the expression but he still looked away and rubbed his face with his free hand. "It sounds like you already have a lot of tiny little plans scattering about in that mind of yours. I suppose you expect me to do something to assist you in any way possible." He made it sound a question as his eyes glanced sideways at Elizabeth. The young woman couldn't help but smile at him.

"I shall ask for your help Jack but rest assured it won't be something that shall endanger your life or your reputation. Consider it part of the deal we made with you in return for not sending you to prison once we set foot on Port Royal." She told him. Jack gestured for her to go on with a casual wave of his hand. "All I ask from you is simple. Let Carrie aboard your ship later this evening without any of the men pursuing her knowing of it. She'll be coming to Port Royal with us so there won't be any real danger or trouble for you. So, will you help us?" She asked him. Jack took another swallow from his bottle of rum before putting his boots down on the floor and sitting up straight from the armchair.

"It's not like I have any choice in the matter love. Even if I oppose to that you would stop at nothing to get what you want so I might as well agree to assist you and save us all the trouble. But I suggest you send her up to your rooms right now if Jones truly has been making deals with Marine. I can hear the lad coming in from the kitchen." He told her. Carrie widened her eyes in panic as both she and Elizabeth stood up from their chairs. Will and Norrington stood up straight as well and looked at each other in surprise. Then as if coming to a discussed agreement, the two men nodded to each other and began to walk towards the kitchen.

"Hurry and bring her upstairs. Norrington and I will keep Jones busy." Will whispered loud enough for only the people in the sitting room to hear. Elizabeth gave them a grateful smile before grabbing Carrie's arm and dragging her upstairs as fast as they could. Carrie had no choice but to stay silent and follow the young woman. Jack watched everyone stand up from their relaxed positions and walk away indifferently. He swirled the remaining contents of rum in his bottle while his thoughts wandered about aimlessly. Questions without answers popped up into his head but those only made him ask even more questions without answers. He placed his hands behind his head and slouched against the armchair he was sitting on with a look of new purpose. He wasn't going to be worried about what was happening to him. He was sure that everything will turn out just fine. Stranger things have happened to him before and look how it turned out in the end. Events will surely mold itself to his wants and needs when the time comes. After all, he is the legendary Captain Jack Sparrow.


	8. Deceptions and Lies

**AN**Here is the next chapter to **The Other Aztec Treasure**Hope you enjoy it! Don't forget to review me. XD

* * *

**_ "Jones, Jones, Jones. You know I can't simply go out in the open and be seen talking to you. What would your new friends say about that? Hm?" - Sharpshooter Marine_**

**Chapter 8 - Deceptions and Lies**

Jones walked out of the church with a small smile on his face. He had just given the padre the bag of gold he got from his dealing last night; but not before taking a small amount from it for his own needs. It had been a great shock to the old man as Jones gave him the pouch that he thought the padre was going to faint. He was glad that the bag of gold was going to be a great help for the needy. In his opinion, it was better to use it that way than to spend the money on unnecessary luxury. He placed his hands inside the pockets of his old coat and whistled a happy tune as he made his way back to his own home. Halfway through his short walk he noticed four men who have been following him from the church. They were positioned at different points of direction but they were all going the same way he is. He raised an eyebrow as the one in front of him stopped. Jones began to move around him but the man moved to block him. Then another man from the left side began to move closer to him. Jones was forced to move to the right as they pushed him away.

_So that's your little game eh? Alright. I'll play along for now._

Jones let himself be lead by the four men to wherever it is they were taking him. He was going to go along with them until he knew where they were taking him and who ordered them to. After that he planned on escaping them. He wasn't worried about getting caught in the chase. Years of being a thief and running away from the authorities have helped him hone his ability in evading anyone who was chasing him. He followed the men through the busy, crowded streets until all four ran towards him and grabbed him by the arms. Jones tried to struggle away from them but fighting has never been his expertise. The four men held him down and dragged him quickly towards one of the dark alleyways in town. He staggered and tried not to fall as they dragged him in and threw him forwards. Jones fell to the ground and coughed out dirt that went to his mouth with a grimace.

He looked in front of him and saw a black boot tapping the ground impatiently but slowly. Looking further above him he saw the familiar face of the person he had made his recent deal with. He narrowed his eyes at her as he stood up and brushed the dirt off his clothes.

"So you're the one who ordered these buffoons to lead me here. You know you could have just come right up to me and talk to me. I would have agreed to that." He said. Marine stood still and in silence as she watched Jones recover himself. The thief stopped fixing himself and crossed his arms at Marine. "I thought everything was planned out and prepared already? I go with you on board the ship and you take me to the town where I do what you ask of me. What do you want now?" He asked. The female pirate gave him a smile that never reached her eyes as she walked towards him and placed an arm around his shoulder.

"Jones, Jones, Jones. You know I can't simply go out in the open and be seen talking to you. What would your new friends say about that? Hm?" She asked him rhetorically. Jones widened his eyes but before he could open his mouth and speak Marine pressed a finger to his lip. "Yes, I know all about Jack Sparrow and his little 'crew' temporarily residing in your house. And I know something else that you don't. They have something that I want. And I want you to help me take it from them." Jones slapped the female pirate's hand and arm away from him and looked at her suspiciously.

"What is this thing that you want and how am I supposed to help you get it?" He asked her.

"What it is doesn't matter to you. All you have to do is keep Jack and the others inside the house long enough for me and my men to go into." Marine told him. "Once that is done, everything we planned out will go on accordingly." She explained. Jones frowned at her.

"But what are you going to do with Jack and the others?" Another smile came on Marine's lips. But this time, it wasn't as nice as it had been earlier which was saying something.

"The same thing I will do to you if you keep asking questions instead of doing exactly what I ordered you to do." She said. Although her voice was calm and composed, there was a dangerous glint in her eyes that spoke of her promise in what she had said. Jones sensed it and clenched his hands into tight fists.

"I may be a thief and you may be a good friend of mine, but I still have my morals. I won't agree to helping you kill someone for your own personal gains." Jones told her determinedly. "I will go through with the deal we made last night, but I'll never agree to this." Marine narrowed her eyes at him then placed a hand to her face and gave a resigned sigh.

"If that is your resolve then. It's such a shame. I'm not much of a religious person you see," She began as she called for one of her men over. The large, bulky pirate stood beside Marine in silence as the female pirate continued. "But it would sadden me greatly if something bad were to happen to one of its sacred places. Such as, let's see...Port Nassau's very own church perhaps?" Jones widened his eyes as a smile grew on Marine's face. She patted the man's shoulder in a friendly gesture before looking at him. "I want you to go to your home together with Harry. He will keep an eye on you in case you decide to betray me. As soon as you do something suspicious, he will give the signal to the other three men. They in turn will run to the church where more of my men are waiting to burn it up into ashes. Don't even think of knocking Harry unconscious because as soon as my men see that you're not walking together with Harry, they will give the signal to burn the church." She explained. Jones narrowed his eyes angrily at her.

"You...you can't do this! Your business is with me alone so you leave everyone else out of it." Marine chuckled and shook her head slowly from side to side.

"Of course I'll leave them alone. But whether I leave them in one piece or in bits of pieces is up to you Jones. So," She held out her hand to him with a smug grin on her face. "Do we have an accord?" Jones stared at the hand then looked up at her. He sighed in defeat and shook her hand reluctantly. All of a sudden, they heard a loud crash from deeper in the alleyway. All heads turned to watch a cat jump out from the shadows and run away from where it had hidden itself; behind a pile of old, empty boxes. Jones had held his breath in panic when he thought someone was hiding and eavesdropping on them then blew a sigh of relief when he saw the feline run off. Marine wasn't as relaxed as he was as she narrowed her eyes at where the cat jumped from.

"It was just a cat thank goodness." Jones muttered. The pirate released her hold on Jones' hand and began walking towards the boxes, taking out her short sword out of the sheath from the inside of her sleeve. He looked at her in surprise.

"What are you doing? No one's there." He said in confusion.

"When you're someone like me, you learn to become suspicious of everything in your surroundings no matter how common and natural they seemed to be." Marine told him. The sound of her casual footsteps echoed in the dark and almost empty alleyway as she continued to walk towards the boxes. The thief rolled his eyes and opened mouth to make a sarcastic comment when he felt one of the men with him tap his shoulder. Jones looked at Harry and the other pirates who stood where they were and watched their captain calmly. Although they didn't speak, the look on their faces spoke a lot of what they felt. Somehow Jones understood that it wasn't wise to try and question Marine's actions to her. He gave a soft sigh of defeat and looked at Marine as she stopped right behind the pile of boxes and made to peer around them.

But before she could take a look, they heard running footsteps nearing them. They all turned to that sound and saw a panting, agitated man. Marine turned her attention back to the pile of boxes and looked around them to find nothing. Her face was calm but anyone could see that her lips thinned as she sheathed back her sword a bit harshly. Jones had been sure that there was no one behind the boxes but even he was beginning to become convinced that there was as he looked at Marine. The female pirate turned around and looked at the newcomer as he recovered from his running and pointed to the direction where he had run from.

"Captain...it's Tommy...we found him unconscious somewhere in an alleyway..." The man started. Marine interrupted him as she made quick, long strides across the distance between her and the pirate and ordered him to lead her. But before she followed the pirate, she turned around to face Jones.

"Don't forget our little accord Jones. Be careful of what you say and do in front of Jack Sparrow and the others." She warned him. Then she smiled at him triumphantly and began walking away from the alleyway without another word. Jones watched her leave while he gritted his teeth and clenched his hands into fists. He knew Marine for a long time, but it was the first time he saw this side of the female pirate. He wondered what had happened that turned her into a cold hearted and ruthless pirate. Harry was still standing beside him with a not so friendly, permanent expression on his face while his thoughts wandered about. Jones looked at the man with an angry glare once he got uncomfortable with his gaze before walking away from the alley as well. The pirate followed in silence and Jones made no move to stop him.

The other three were within his sights as well but they weren't as close to him as Harry was. Jones walked through the streets with a frown on his face. Children and adults who knew him as the man who always helped them out smiled and waved at him but Jones ignored them all. He wasn't going to give Marine a chance to use more people to blackmail him. The people who greeted him frowned worriedly when Jones didn't greet them back or made any move to acknowledge them. Jones hated himself for that, but he knew that it was going to keep the innocent bystanders safe and unharmed. He walked and tried his best to ignore the four pirates that were following his every move as well. He could hear himself groaning and itching to run away from everything that's happened within the day.

_What have I gotten myself into this time_?

* * *

Once Jones and the four pirates reached the thief's home, the three assinged to watch from the outside dispersed. Jones might not see them from his windows, but he knew that the three would be watching him closely under their captain's orders. After giving a soft sigh, Jones, together with Harry, entered through the back door at the kitchen and saw two empty bottles on the table. The thief shook his head in disbelief and smiled slightly with affection for his other pirate friend. He wasn't expecting Jack to be there so early since the man had mentioned some business he needed to attend to. He turned to the direction of the sitting room and saw Will and Norrington enter the kitchen. After giving Harry a quick glance, he forced a smile on his face as he walked up to the two men. 

"Will! Norrington! I'm glad to see the two of you still in one piece. I was worried that you wouldn't be patient enough to stay trapped in one place." He told them. Will smiled back at him.

"Well, we are and we have stayed put just as you told us to." He told him. "Who is that with you?" He asked when he noticed the pirate standing silently behind all of them. Jones looked at Harry and grimaced inwardly then turned to the two men with a reassuring smile on his face.

"He's just a friend of mine who wanted to stay here for a while. I do that often so it doesn't really bother me. His name is Harry. Harry, meet Will Turner and James Norrington." He introduced, cutting Norrington's title on purpose. He wasn't about to get into more trouble by reminding the man that there was a Commodore within their perimeters. Norrington frowned at that but made no move to correct him to the thief's relief. Will smiled at the pirate and held out a hand politely. Harry looked at the hand but made no move to shake it. Jones gritted his teeth and fought off the urge to kick Harry's bottom. If they planned on leaving everyone else oblivious to their plans, the least the man could do was be civil enough. Jones pushed him away and smiled nervously at Will.

"I apologize on his behalf. He isn't a really friendly bloke. Why don't we go to the sitting room where there is more room for us to roam about." He said, pushing the two forcefully back into the sitting room. As Jones led them away from the kitchen, he saw a hand with a bottle of rum hanging limply on the arm of an armchair. A knowing smile and a soft chuckle came to his lips.

"Still not enough rum eh Jack?" He said. The pirate, whose whole body was slumped on the armchair, sat up straight and peered over the top with a small grin on his face.

"Can never have enough rum mate." He replied. The grin fell from his face as he saw Harry appear from the kitchen. He had a guarded look about him as he narrowed his eyes at the pirate. "Who is he?" He asked suspiciously. Jones gritted his teeth and forced a smile on his face as he looked at the large, bulky man behind him.

"He's a mate of mine in need of a place to stay in for the night. Jack, meet Harry. Harry, meet Jack Sparrow." He said as he introduced the men to each other. Jack frowned at Jones and mouthed 'Captain' to him while gesturing wildly to himself but the thief didn't bother to correct his so-called mistake. That was one more thing he shouldn't remind Marine's lackey. Harry glanced at Jack Sparrow for a few seconds before completely ignoring him. A small frown of distaste grew on Jack's lips but to Jones' relief, the pirate didn't comment on it. He just ignored Harry as he flopped back down on the armchair and finished his bottle of rum. He blinked in surprise and looked at his bottle to find it empty. With a soft but angry mutter, he stood up from his chair and passed the two men by.

"I shall go get me some more rum..." He muttered more to himself. Before he entered and disappeared through the kitchen, he gave a backward, suspicious glance at Harry. Jones wanted to cry and tear his hair out in frustration but forced his hands to stay down on his sides. Will and Norrington were seated comfortably on the chairs that littered the sitting room and were doing businesses of their own. The thief looked around and tilted his head in confusion when he saw that someone was missing.

"Where is Miss Swann?" He asked. He could swear he saw both men flinch slightly at his question but took it as something that was playing with his eyes. As if the mention of her brought a summons, Jones looked towards the stairs and saw the young blond haired woman coming down slowly. She stopped at the last step when she saw Jones and smiled brightly at him.

"Jones! You're back." She said. "You were quite quick in your business. What were you doing?" She asked as she walked towards Will and sat down beside him. Jones scratched the back of his head and smiled at her.

"It 'twas nothing Miss Swann. I was just going about my usual business, doing my job and all." He told her. "Oh before I forget, this is Harry. He's a good friend of mine who shall be staying in my house for the night." He said, gesturing with an arm to the large pirate behind him. Elizabeth gave the pirate a nod of acknowledgment before looking back at Jones.

"Well you shall have no worry in having enough rooms for all your guests. We shall all be leaving tonight, together with Jack." She told him. "I must get back to my father before he becomes too worried about me and I must see to my wedding day." She added with a small smile to Will. Jones could feel Harry's heated gaze on himself and gritted his teeth.

"Miss Swann, I congratulate you on this wonderful occasion but are you sure you cannot stay for even one more night? I have not seen my good friend Jack for a long time now so it means so much to me to see him. Would you not give a man this one, small request?" He asked. Elizabeth frowned and looked considerably at Jones. Before she could open her mouth, a deep and rough voice from the kitchen interrupted her.

"Sorry mate, I can't do that. Every day I spend with Miss Swann here and the rest of these...people." Jack said at the last second, giving a small innocent smile to Will and Norrington before looking back at the thief. "Is a hindrance to me and my own goals. I understand how much you want to be with me 'an all, but alas, we must all leave you here. In fact, we can leave right now and wait for the night to arrive at some tavern or the sort." He said as he swayed on the spot where he stood with a new bottle of rum in his hand. Will, Elizabeth and Jones widened their eyes and spoke up at the same time.

"No!" They were taken aback and looked at each other with surprise. Silence filled the room as each one swam in their own little thoughts. It was Elizabeth who spoke up first.

"Jack I am a respectable, civilized lady and I shall not allow you to make me wait in a raucous, dirty and noisy tavern when I can wait here in a clean and peaceful environment." She said. "We must leave tonight, when it's much easier and safer for us to walk about." She added with an intense gaze at Jack. Will looked at Jack as well, trying to send him an unseen message that would make the pirate understand. Jack looked at them both in a strange manner before his face suddenly lit up in remembrance. When it seemed that he understood what the two were trying to tell him, he looked at Jones and grinned at him sleepily.

"Well then I guess that settles that. We shall be staying here until tonight then." He decided. Jones suppressed a sigh of relief that wanted to come out of him at the same time Will, Elizabeth, and even Norrington did. The thief didn't know what he would have done if Jack and the others had left before Marine and her crew came.

_But what if they couldn't come on time? How am I supposed to keep them here long enough?_ He wondered. He shook his head and forced himself to shake off the thought. Of course Marine was going to come on time. If she wanted whatever it was that she wanted from Jack, she would do everything in her power to get it. Even if he was not so sure of the Marine he knew before, he was still confident that the female pirate was not one to give up or allow herself to lose. He nodded to himself as if confirming it, then smiled at Jack.

"Well that is great news! I shall go upstairs and show Harry the room he'll stay in. Then I shall take a quick bath to wash off all this dirt and sweat before sitting down and hearing more about your great adventures, Jack. Is that all right?" He asked them. The others nodded to him in reply. He gave one last boyish smile before leading Harry up the stairs into the second floor.

* * *

Will, Elizabeth, Norrington and Jack watched the thief and his friend disappear from the steps before looking at each other in silence. Elizabeth had her arms crossed and was glaring at Jack, who had an innocent expression of his face after he drank half of the rum inside the bottle.

"Why are you looking at me that way Lizzie?" He asked in a slightly slurred manner. With all the alcohol he's been consuming, it seemed that he had begun to become even drunker than usual which was something else considering it was Jack.

"Because you almost ruined our plan. If I had not spoken up and thought up of an excuse, we would be roaming about Port Nassau that's filled with pirates looking for Carrie." She whispered softly while glancing towards the stairs suspiciously. They had to be careful, especially if they were going to talk about Carrie and their knowledge of Jones' association with Marine. Jack opened his mouth to give a retort then thought of it and grinned at her instead.

"I knew that. Of course I did." He said before taking another sip. Elizabeth narrowed her eyes at Jack and was about to make a comeback when Will touched her shoulder and shook his head at her.

"This isn't the time to be fighting amongst each other. We have to talk about Jones and that other man, Harry. There is something suspicious about that man..." He began. Norrington gave a nod of agreement to what Will said.

"The bloke's a pirate." Jack announced casually, making all three heads turn to him. "I would swear on my mother's grave that he is a pirate; probably part of Marine's crew in fact. That man has the sea written all over him. I can smell it from him as well." He added as he sniffed with his nose for greater effect. Elizabeth and Will looked at him strangely but Norrington gave Jack a look of consideration.

"Sparrow is probably right. The man does look like he's been under the sun long. This can possibly mean that Marine knows that we have Carrie, and is trying to get her back from us." He told them. Elizabeth widened her eyes and looked up worriedly at where her room would be. Jack walked towards Elizabeth and stopped in front of her, blocking her way and keeping her from running up the stairs before she could even stand up from the armchair she was sitting on.

"Calm down Elizabeth the man is not fool enough to take on three-four people I mean." Jack coughed and avoided the gaze of the irritated young woman as he spoke. "If he wanted to take Carrie away, he would be plotting a plan to take the lass and escape without our knowing of it. But since we know that they might possibly know that Carrie is here, then we know that we can plan a backup plan to use against those people who know whom we don't want knowing what we know savvy?" Everyone stared at Jack and tried to comprehend what he had said as he moved aside from Elizabeth's way and sat down on one of the other armchairs comfortably.

"So how do we get Carrie out of the house without anyone aside from the four of us knowing about it?" Will asked. Jack looked at him and shrugged his shoulders casually.

"Get her to jump down from the window? My best advice would be to do exactly that, since if I'm right, which I always am since I am Captain Jack Sparrow, Jones and his other pirate friend would be joining us to see us off this port and probably get back Carrie from us on the way. I could pretend to have some last minute appointment to go to, see Carrie then take her to the Pearl with me." The three looked at each other in consideration while Jack finished up the bottle. "Or we could knock out both men and simply use our little legs to run to the rowboat as fast as we can and pray that we won't get caught by Marine or her crew." Jack added, while waving his arms about. They stared at Jack and spoke at the same time.

"We choose the window."

"My thoughts exactly. A strange coincidence innit?" He asked rhetorically. He tipped the bottle sideways with his mouth open and found it empty. He narrowed his eyes through the opening of the bottle as if trying to find a drop that would still be there. He dropped his hand with the bottle in hand to his side and stood up from the armchair with a weary sigh. "Why is the rum always gone?" He muttered as he walked back to the kitchen. Will, Elizabeth and Norrington stared at him then shook their heads in disbelief. After a while, Elizabeth looked up at the second floor worriedly and stood up from the armchair.

"I'll go and check up on things." She told them. Will and Norrington nodded to her in silence and brooded to themselves while Elizabeth made her way up the stairs. When she reached the second landing she saw Harry staring at the front of her door suspiciously. He was about to reach out to the doorknob when he looked up at her and immediately snatched his hand back as if it had been burned. He stepped back, away from the door and grumbled softly to himself about 'strange noises' before walking away to another room. Elizabeth's eyes followed his form and she didn't move in her spot until he disappeared from the hallway. Once he was gone, she entered her room and saw nothing inside. She grew worried and slightly panicked as she looked around for any sign of Carrie.

"Carrie? Are you there?" She asked in a whisper. The sound of shuffling feet and a heavy sigh of relief came from behind the bed. Elizabeth felt her heart beat slow down to a normal level as Carrie got up from the floor a bit shakily. She quickly closed the door to the room and crossed the distance between them. The two of them sat down on the bed and hugged each other.

"I thought someone else was going to open the door. I was so scared of getting caught that I hid behind the bed." Carrie explained. Elizabeth smiled at her.

"It's a good thing you did. There _was_ someone in front of the door looking suspiciously at the room before I came up. If he entered the room while you were unaware of his presence there would have been trouble for all of us. Did you make any noise that might have caught the man's attention?" She asked. Carrie bit her lip and nodded hesitantly.

"I...I was sitting on the bed when I heard footsteps outside. I tried to stand up and hide when I hit my leg on the bed. The noise wasn't that loud but it would have been heard by anyone in a silent hallway. I think that's why there was someone staring at the door. I'm so glad you came into the room and not someone else." She said. Elizabeth nodded in agreement. If Jones was working together with Marine and her plan, then none of them would have made it out of the house freely. Carrie fell down on the bed and looked at the other woman wearily. "So what are we going to do now?"

"For now, you stay here and keep yourself hidden from anyone but Will, Norrington, Jack and I. Then we decided that you should go out through the window of this room once we leave tonight. Jack will come for you and bring you back to the Black Pearl." Elizabeth explained to her. Carrie nodded once then widened her eyes when something tugged strongly at her memory.

"Patches! I completely forgot about him. What are we going to do about him?" She cried worriedly. Elizabeth tilted her head to the side as she looked at her in confusion.

"What are you talking about?"

"Aren't we going to let him come with us? He helped me get out of the brig and kept me safe while I was being chased by Marine and her crew. It's only right that we help him out too. If we leave him here to fend for himself he will surely die!" She explained. Elizabeth frowned and looked down regrettably.

"I'm sorry Carrie, I can't do anything about him. Unless he comes to us, we're going to have to leave Port Nassau without him. It's hard enough to escape with you accompanying us; but finding this man in order to bring him with us as well is going to be even harder on everyone. He will just have to work on his own escape. I'm sure he will be fine even if he's left alone." She reassured Carrie. The young woman gave a sigh of defeat and nodded her head sadly.

"I understand. But I just feel so bad and so tired about everything."

"Well that is understandable." Elizabeth said. "You've been taken away from your own world to be placed here alone. You've been kidnapped and threatened by someone who was supposed to be your best friend. And now we're going on a dangerous path to escape Marine and her crew. Anyone would be as emotionally unstable as you are now."

"I guess so..." Carrie muttered. "But still...there are a few good things that happened while I was here. I met you, Will and Norrington plus..." At this Carrie couldn't help but grin wide like a giddy high school girl.

"I can't believe that I was saved by _the_ Jack Sparrow. How did you feel when you were saved by him?" She asked the other woman curiously. Elizabeth wrinkled her nose as she recalled to mind the event.

"What I felt? I felt wet, cold, and humiliated by walking around in public in my undergarments." She replied. "And I felt annoyed because Jack used me to save his own life after he saved mine." Carrie shrugged at that.

"He's a pirate. Normally people like him don't just save people then let them go when they need it in turn. Especially if it's going to keep their butts safe and away from authorities or the noose." She said. A considering look came on Elizabeth's face and she sighed in defeat.

"You have a point." Carrie smiled at her then sighed and looked up at the ceiling.

"I wonder how Vanessa is doing..." She murmured softly all of a sudden. Elizabeth looked at her and was about to ask who Vanessa was when she remembered their conversations while they were being held in the brig of the boat together. She looked down at her hands and fiddled with them slowly.

"You're not going to tell me that you hate her? That you don't care about her if something were to happen to her? It's not your fault that she's acting this way so you have no reason not to think so." She told her, taking her hand and squeezing it comfortingly. "You told me that she knew a secret that only Vanessa would know. I don't think your best friend would have told anyone else about it, let alone a pirate who looks exactly like her." She added. Carrie shook her head at Elizabeth.

"No I don't hate her, even if I want to believe that she's not the real Vanessa, the secret she just told me is the biggest, most obvious proof I can get." Tears slowly came down to her cheeks from her eyes. "She's been my best friend for more than 10 years Elizabeth. We've been backing each other up in our tough times and our good times. When I was in the deepest part of my hellhole, she was the one who stood by my side and helped me recover from it. We both know everything there is to know about each other. Something as sudden and as strange like this shouldn't just pull us apart." Elizabeth looked at Carrie in understanding.

"You think there's something wrong with her."

"It's possible that she's being controlled against her will." Carrie said. "It's also possible that she's being threatened and she's doing everything she's doing now because she has no choice in the matter."

"Or this impostor could read minds and saw everything there was to know about you." Elizabeth added, giving her a comforting smile. "You could be right. If you are then we'll do everything we can to get her back. Marine is a very good person and I don't want to find her acting this way for the rest of her life." She said. Carrie smiled as she sat up on the bed and hugged the other woman tightly.

"Thanks Elizabeth."

* * *

Marine stood on her boat and watched as men and women walked close to the docks either doing business or laboring over their own cargos for their own captains. When they had arrived to check on Tommy, he was lying on the ground unconscious with a large lump on the back of his head. Marine couldn't find anything that would tell her who knocked him out or why, but she had a good idea on the latter. She ordered her men to take Tommy to the ship and let him recover himself there. Then she ordered all the free, sober men to stay with her on the ship for the rest of the day. She was waiting for the sun to come down over the horizon. If there was one thing that she knew of the traitorous man she had in her crew, it was that he was no idiot. He had planned on getting Carrie out of the brig very impressively; something that not normal pirates would do very skillfully. He was in a disguise, something Marine realized as she thought of the man named Patches because if he wasn't then Marine should have recognized him right away. 

When someone plans on running or escaping, it usually falls during night time; a time when everyone's practically dead drunk and couldn't see as much as compared to day time. That was why she planned on making her crew stay awake the whole night and check on anyone suspicious.

"Captain!" Someone shouted. Marine looked to the person who had shouted and was about to ask what he wanted when she caught a form behind the man. She immediately recognized the man as Patches holding a mysterious looking bundle in his hand. The first thing that came to Marine's mind was that the man was trying to lead her men into a trap. She couldn't find any reason why Patches would be so careless as to walk around town without trying to hide himself. It was either a trap, or the man was a fool and was simply following orders from someone else. Then her thoughts wandered to what was inside the bundle. There was no distinct shape so she couldn't see or tell what it was. As if her thoughts had called to him, Patches casually turned his head to her direction and froze. Their eyes met in a span of seconds and got the other man running away in a panic. Marine turned to face the pirate who had called her and interrupted him.

"Go after that man you dimwits! He's the traitor who took the prisoner away." She shouted, pointing to where Patches had stood a while ago. Immediately every single man in her ship began to scramble about and go down from the ship to follow Patches. Marine rubbed her face with her hands and gave a frustrated sigh as she cursed herself softly. If she hadn't pondered on Patches' intent, they would have caught him easily and tortured him for information. Sometimes she hated herself for thinking too much on everything that she sees. Now because of her actions, she let every man on her crew go after Patches; leaving none for her to lead to Jones' house. She gritted her teeth and clenched her hands into angry fists.

"Damn it."


	9. Avoiding the Trap

**AN: **Hey there! I apologize for the late update. I've had a busy life ever since I got into college. But have to fear. I'll still go on with the story for as long as I can. Here's the next chapter to The Other Aztec Treasure. I hope you enjoy this part and review if you can.

Aside from not owning Jack Sparrow and POTC 1, 2 and 3, I do not own Sherlock Holmes and his quotes.

* * *

**_"Jones I know how much you want us to stay, but I think it's time that we leave Port Nassau." - Will Turner_**

**Chapter 9 - Avoiding the Trap**

Jones paced the floor repeatedly and impatiently inside the kitchen while Harry sat on a chair and watched him move about agitatedly in silence. The two had offered to cook dinner for everyone and told the others not to come into the kitchen so it was only the two of them in there. A frying pan with meat sliced in cubes and a pot of stew lay on the stove below the hot dancing flames. The thief looked out of the window at the dark streets expectantly then gritted his teeth and sighed in frustration when he didn't see what he wanted to see. He walked away from the window and began to pace once more. The pirate sighed at him as well and crossed his arms.

"You got nuthin' to worry about the capt'n; she will be here. Ye have to worry about how you're goin' to keep them inside the house while the capt'n isn't here yet." Harry said. Jones stopped pacing to stare at him incredulously.

"Keep them here?! I could barely keep them from leaving my house and it's a surprise that they're still here right now." He told him. He moved close to the door to the sitting room and peered at the edge to find Jack, Will and Norrington lounging about the room. They were talking quietly to each other so he couldn't tell what they were discussing about but from the way they looked he wasn't about to bet on them staying for much longer. He turned his head to Harry. "What am I supposed to do? Tie them all up and wait for Marine to come?" He asked rhetorically. Harry uncrossed his arms and stood up from the seat.

"The capt'n just told me to keep an eye on you and make sure you do what she ordered you to do. I'm not here to help you." He said. Jones narrowed his eyes at him and shot his head up when he heard someone coming towards them. Both Jones and Harry watched Will enter the kitchen. He saw Jones and pointed to the cupboards where they kept the glasses.

"I'm just going to get something to drink." He explained. Jones smiled at Will half-heartedly and stepped aside for Will.

"Sure. Go ahead. Take as much time as you want." He murmured the last line softly to himself as he watched the young blacksmith walk towards the cupboards. Will grabbed one of the glasses and poured himself some water from the tap. He drank from it slowly and peered at Jones from the side as he did. He placed the glass down on the table and was silent for a few moments. The kitchen was swimming with an air of awkwardness and anxiety. Everyone looked at the other without doing or making any sort of reaction. Finally, Jones looked at Will and opened his mouth the same time Will did.

"Jones I know how much you want us to stay, but I think it's time that we leave Port Nassau."

"I'm sorry for keeping you and the others here for this long."

The two men stopped and looked at each other in surprise as their minds registered what the other had just said. Harry was looking from Jones to Will and was about to make a run for the back door of the kitchen when the thief grabbed the glass Will used earlier and smashed it on the pirate's head. Harry's eyes rolled back as he fell to the ground in an unconscious heap. The young blacksmith stood frozen in his spot as he stared at the limp body with his mouth hanging open in shock. He looked up at Jones in question.

"What on earth just happened here?" He asked. Jones was rubbing his face with his free hand as he brushed his hand on his shirt to get rid of the little shards of glass that didn't fell. His hand was bleeding slightly, but it wasn't as bad as the large cut on Harry's head. The thief winced when he saw what he had done to the pirate. He was never one for violence; he preferred to run away rather than defend himself from attacks. Jones grabbed Harry's armpits and began to drag him across the kitchen floor to lay him against the wall on one side. Then he looked at Will and motioned for him to come closer. Will titled his head in confusion but moved towards the thief curiously.

"Listen Will there's not much time left for me to explain so I'll just skip the details. There is someone out there who is threatening me to keep you and the others here for as long as I can. I don't know what they want from you or Jack, but they will kill you all if you stay here longer." Will widened his eyes and was about to rush out of the kitchen when Jones grabbed his wrist and pulled him back. "Wait don't go out there yet! If you go out looking hysterical or panicked the three other pirates watching my house outside will realize something is wrong and head over to the church to burn it down into ashes. I can go out either because if they don't see me with Harry they will do it." Will looked at him worriedly.

"Then what are we supposed to do now?" He asked. The sound of the door opening reached their ears and they turned their heads around to find Norrington entering the kitchen with a concerned expression on his face. He opened his mouth and was about to speak when he saw the unconscious Harry and narrowed his eyes at them skeptically.

"What on earth is going on in here? I heard a crash and thought someone was attacking." He told them. Jones bit his lip and closed his eyes as he tried to calm his nerves. It wasn't the time to argue or to act too rashly and it wouldn't help if he simply vented his frustration on them. Will was the one who did the explaining to Norrington as his concerned look slowly faded and turned into an angry frown. When Will finished, Norrington began to pace across the short distance of the kitchen.

"And you expect me to believe this? What if he's lying to us now and is simply trying to send us into one of his traps by pretending to be on our side? How can we be sure that he's truly helping us?" He asked suspiciously. Will looked at Jones with a small frown. He didn't know how to answer that and was starting to have second thoughts about the thief as well. Jones closed his eyes and sighed. He had no idea how he was going to get them away from harm now. As if to make matters worse, Jack himself entered the kitchen and looked at all of them indifferently. Then once his eyes turned to Harry, they seemed to widen in surprise for a split second. Then he looked at Jones and his slightly bloodied hand and nodded as if he had known what had happened from the start.

"So Jones, now that you've probably sent all of us to our horrifying, treacherous deaths, what do ye plan to do now?" He asked calmly. Jones narrowed his eyes at Jack.

"What we're supposed to do? You're the captain here. You're the one who escaped Nassau without firing a single shot. You tell me what I should do." He said. The pirate rolled his eyes and raised both of his hands up in exasperation.

"Am I the only one here who is not a _bloody_ idiot? Do I have to do and think everything for you?" He waited for an answer from anyone but when no one answered, he sighed. "The solution is simple; we head for the docks and grab a boat. The Pearl's most likely waiting for us out there on the appointed hour already."

"But Marine is most likely over there waiting for us to come out of our hiding place." Will argued. "If we go out there, she and her crew will be on to us before we could reach the docks to get a boat." Jones was about to voice out his agreement when he realized what Will said and looked at him in surprise.

"You know about Marine? But I never-how did you-"

"Yes Jones we know about you and your deal with Sharpshooter Marine. And by your reaction I'm guessing that she's the one behind all of this." Jack interrupted. Jones looked from Jack, to Will, to Norrington, who both had looks of surprise as well. Finally he looked down in resignment and nodded in reply. Jack pursed his lips and began to cross the kitchen floor towards the back door. "Now that we have that cleared, I'm thinking we sneak up on these fellows and knock them out before they realize there's something going on here." He said, reaching out towards the door knob. He pushed it open and blinked in surprise when he saw a face staring right back at him. Both Jack and the other man stepped back from each other and stood there dumbly. Will grabbed the first thing that came to his hand and threw it at Jack.

"Jack!" The pirate turned in time to catch the thing Will threw and raised it in front of the pirate in his defense. The man stared at the salt shaker incredulously before narrowing his eyes at Jack and taking out his sword from its sheath. Jack hurriedly sprinkled salt into his hand then blew it at the man's face right before he could thrust his sword at Jack. The man stepped back and screamed while clawing at his face and trying to rub the salt from his eyes in pain. While the man was distracted, Jack brought the salt shaker down onto the man's head and knocked him unconscious. Once there was nothing blocking the door, Norrington and Jones ran outside; but not before staring at Jack's 'weapon' in a strange manner. The man himself raised it to his face and grimaced as he threw it aside casually.

"A deadly weapon you know; once you've learned how to use it properly." He said to Will with a casual shrug. Will shook his head in disbelief and would have made a comment about it if he didn't toss it to Jack in the first place. After the two men brought the unconscious man inside, they followed Norrington and Jones outside to find them taking care of another man. Will looked around, holding up the lantern he held in his hand, and suddenly grew worried.

"Where's the other one?" Jack looked away from what the other two men were doing and stared at Will in confusion.

"What do you mean the other one?"

"Jones said there were three pirates watching over his house. We only got two, excluding Harry." He explained. Jones had listened in on the conversation and widened his eyes in realization. He cursed aloud as he stood up and began running for the church. Will looked at Norrington and Jack after they dragged the man's body inside the house where no one could discover them and passed the lantern to them.

"Go after Jones. He's headed for the church. I'll go and get Elizabeth and Carrie. We'll catch up to you soon." He said. And with that, Jack and Norrington began running as fast as they could to catch up to Jones while Will rushed into the house and up the stairs.

* * *

The church was not a very large and complex structure; its walls, doors and windows were plain enough that anyone could pass it by without knowing it was there. The only thing that brought beauty into the building was the most elegant stained-glass art of the 18th century built in the front of the church, right above the double doors. The design showed Christ resurrected from the dead on the third day of his crucifixion and glowed in a mystifying way whenver sunlight reflected on it. Patches was glancing at it admiringly, even though he could barely see it in the slowly growing darkness, as he brushed the dirt off his clothes. On both sides of the church were dark alleyways leading to even more complicated and deeper paths within. Hidden in the middle of one of these alleyways were a couple of men tied up in ropes and gagged with dirty rags. 

Patches had tied up Marine's crew; the ones who had been assigned to burn the building at a command. He had also tied up the man who came running to give the go signal to the others. He planned on leaving them there for someone to find and pick up. After giving a quick glance at the alleyway to make sure everything was in order, he turned around and was about to walk away when he saw a shadow of a person running towards him. Jones took out a small dagger that he kept with him at all times and lunged at Patches fiercely. It took Patches half a minute to realize what Jones planned to do to him and sidestep the blade. The sound of a cloth ripping made Patches curse to himself. If he had jumped a second later he would have had a nice cut on his body instead of having one on the coat he wore.

The pirate immediately balanced himself as he dodged another swing from Jones. He was frustrated with himself for tying up the other men so slowly. If he had been quicker then he wouldn't be here in time to bump into Jones. He should gave guessed that the thief was going to follow right after the other man had arrived to give the signal to the crew to burn the church. Jones was not into violence, but he had enough skills with a blade to fight and defend himself well. Patches could barely evade his attacks in the dark as he spoke to the thief.

"Listen mate! I'm not one of Marine's crew. You've gotta believe me! I'm not here to burn down the church." He said. Jones stopped slashing and narrowed his eyes at Patches.

"Why should I believe you? If you were an innocent bystander you wouldn't have known about Marine and her plans for the church." The pirate grimaced at what Jones said and regretted opening his mouth. He had no more chances of convincing Jones otherwise as the thief began attacking him again. Patches managed to get out his own dagger after their short talk and used it to block the thief's attacks. He could feel the force of the thief's dagger pushing him back with every lunge. He began to take in short, ragged breaths as he defended himself from Jones. Soon, he would become too tired to continue blocking Jones' slashes. After a while of attacking and dodging, the thief knocked Patches' blade away from his hand, sending it flying across the short distance to land on the ground before the church door. The pirate turned his head to the dagger's direction but stopped when he felt the blade of Jones' dagger pointed at his throat. Patches stood as still as he could and watched the steel blade warily while trying to catch his breath. Jack and Norrington caught up to Jones at that moment and looked at the two fighters calmly.

"What do you plan on doing to him now?" Norrington asked the thief as he moved the lantern closer to get a good look at Jones' adversary.

"We should kill him and throw him into the sea." Jones replied darkly, glaring daggers at Patches. "This is what he gets for following the command of a madwoman who would use the church for her own personal, selfish goals." Despite the angry expression on the thief's face, the pirate gave no sign of being afraid or nervous. He just stared at Jones and the dagger at his throat and grinned at Jones' comment.

"I'd probably agree with you on the personal and selfish goal but a madwoman?" He gave a short and soft chuckle at that and shook his head slightly. Jones narrowed his eyes even more at Patches and was about to open his mouth when they heard the shouts of two women.

"Patches!"

"Jones don't kill him! He's not one of them!" Elizabeth shouted after Carrie as they, together with Will, caught up to the rest. Jones turned his gaze on the newcomers but didn't put down the blade. Patches looked at them as well and blew a small sigh of relief. Carrie gently pushed Jones' blade away from Patches before looking at him worriedly. The thief stepped back from the two but still looked at the pirate cautiously.

"Are you alright? Did you get hurt?"

"I'm fine, I'm not hurt. Quit inspecting me for injuries." He mumbled, swatting Carrie away. "And what the hell are you still doing here? You should be headed for the Pearl together with Jack Sparrow." He said, looking at Jack and the rest of the people with him. Jack frowned and stepped up to Patches, waving his finger at him admonishingly.

"That's Captain Jack Sparrow to you lad."

"But how would you know all of these things if you're not a part of Marine's crew?" Jones asked skeptically, making Jack frown in disappointment for being interjected. "You could be leading us into one of her traps without us knowing about it until it's too late. How can we trust you?" Patches shrugged at Jones in reply.

"I don't know. I can't convince you to believe in me. I _could_ be doing this to gain your trust then send you to Marine to get her good graces. Or I could be honestly helping you get away from Port Nassau safe and away from harm. And what about yourself Mr. Westley? You made a deal with Marine. You could be doing all of this just to get their trust and betray them at the right moment." Jones' face fell as Patches said this. The thief's lips thinned to a straight line at the same time his angry gaze on the pirate softened a little. "Not so distrusting now are we? I don't care what you think of me. Just listen to what I'm going to say." The pirate took a deep breath before he began.

"I knew about the lass being in the hands of Jack Sparrow because I saw the two of them running away from a guard. I knew about Jones' deal with Marine and her use of the church to blackmail him because I eavesdropped on their conversation at the alleyway. So to give him some assistance, I decided to keep these blind idiots from burning the church down. And to make things even easier for all of you, I got more than half of Marine's crew distracted long enough for everyone to get the chance to escape." He looked at Jones specifically after that.

"They're probably headed for your empty home right now. I suggest you go with them to the Black Pearl if you want to live long enough to get a bony lass for yourself. Don't worry about the church. Marine won't do anything to it now that she's lost her use of you." Everyone stared at Patches in stunned silence. It was only when the pirate sighed and began to walk away that the others regained their senses.

"Patches wait! Why don't you come with us? I'm sure Jack won't mind if you come along." She said, looking at Jack with hopeful eyes. The captain tried to look away from Carrie but saw Elizabeth looking at him pleadingly as well. He closed his eyes and sighed, berating himself for his weakness with beautiful, dependent women. He opened his eyes to look at Patches.

"Fine, you can come along lad. But you're going to have to work for your stay on the Pearl." He said. Patches grinned at Jack.

"We have a new accord then." Before Jack could ask Patches what he meant by that, the pirate began to move forward towards the direction of the docks. Jack blinked once before running after Patches and walking just a bit further ahead of him. He was not going to make people think that he needed someone to lead for him. Patches shook his head at Jack before following him together with the others who caught up behind him. They put out the light from the lanterns and compressed together as they made their way to the docks.

The whole group followed Jack through a series of narrow pathways and alleyways; moving about quietly while cautiously looking around in preparation of a possible surprise attack. Just because they were going to believe Patches didn't mean they would move with relaxing ease. Even Patches himself was being careful about making any sound that might catch someone's attention. It didn't take them long before they reached the quiet, empty docks of Port Nassau. Thankfully for them, the moonlight was enough to let them see everything that was close to the waters. Patches could see Marine's ship and was relieved to find that there was no sign of anyone on board. Jack got everyone's attention on himself before pointing to two rowboats that lay side by side on the surface of the water at the very end. Carrie grinned brightly and moved towards the boats first in her excitement. But halfway towards the rowboats the shadow of an object flew past her and landed on the ground in front of her. Carrie gave a short cry of surprise and fell back on her bottom as she looked at the glittering dagger in fear. Elizabeth rushed to Carrie's side and helped her get up.

"Are you alright Carrie?"

"Yeah..." The woman replied a bit shakily. "The dagger caught me by surprise." The rest caught up to the two women and looked to the side to find Marine standing behind the dark shadows and under the moon's soft glow. She had her arms crossed and a vicious, triumphant grin of her face.

"I expected more from you Jack." She said as she took a step closer. "When that traitor made me order most of my men to chase after him, I quickly realized that you were trying to slow me down. Then while I ordered my men to head for Jones' home later, I realized that you were trying to pull away the attention on the port. That was why I, together with some of my men, stayed behind and waited for you to arrive. I would have never guessed that he was a part of your crew Jack Sparrow. Nor did I expect him to hear of my discussion with Jones earlier today. And I don't know how he managed to become a part of my crew while I was in Port Royal, but I intend to find out."

"I was quite impressed by everything he did so far; only to be disappointed in the end. Was all that planning just a fluke then?" She shook her head in mock sadness. "A shame that. I admit that you almost had me there, but you were too confident about yourself that you failed to plan even further ahead. You arrogance has always been your weakness after all. He is a very impressive man; to have escaped my notice for that long. But now our little game ends here." With an exaggerated flourish of her hand, she made a dagger appear from nowhere.

"It's time to say goodbye to one of your men Jack. It's a shame to see him go to waste, but we must do what we think is right for us." She said. Patches moved past everyone before another word could be said, and stood at the very front, ignoring everyone else's attempt to pull him back. He stood there confidently, and even had the gall to give a short laugh. Marine raised an eyebrow at him curiously while her hand played with the dagger casually.

"I am touched to hear that you think Jack Sparrow planned all this, but unfortunately he had no inkling of what my plans were. Everything that had transpired here was made by my own mind." He explained, tapping the side of his head for emphasis. "And as sad as it is to say this, you failed to see the rest of my plan." Marine widened her eyes in disbelief as she stared at Patches.

"You dare claim that all of these," She held out her arm as if gesturing to everything around them. "Are of your own planning? More than that, you dare tell me that I didn't see everything that you planned? What can you do now? We caught you before you could escape."

"I never expected to run away from your sight that easily. That was why I got a good number of your men away from your services at the moment."

"I don't need them because I can handle each and every one of you myself."

"Ah sure you can. But you can't kill most of us here. Especially me."

"Who the hell are you?" Marine demanded angrily, her patience running thin. "And why wouldn't I kill you? You're just a plain pirate who doesn't even have his own ship." Patches clucked his tongue as he wagged his finger at her.

"Ah but that is what I want you to think. Go ahead and kill me then." He held out his arms defenselessly as he looked at her in confidence. "I'm sure you'll get me even if I tried to escape but I'm making this easier for you now. If you fail to hit me now then my respect for you as the best pirate would forever be destroyed. I'll simply laugh at you and wonder to myself how on earth you had gotten this far with your infamous reputation. Sharpshooter Marine my arse!" He cried cheerfully. Marine gritted her teeth in anger and raised the dagger in the air. Right before the moment she let go of the dagger, the gears of her mind turned and she widened her eyes in realization. Her hand faltered before letting go of the dagger. It flew straight towards Patches, hitting him squarely on the chest. The pirate gave a soft gasp then grinned at Marine triumphantly before falling to the ground.

"Patches!" Carrie screamed as she moved towards the fallen man. She laid his head on her lap and tried to keep him awake. "What the hell possessed you to do an insane thing like that?! You stupid, brainless fool! Don't die on us now! Get a hold of yourself. If you don't stay alive I swear to God I will bring you back from the dead then kill you myself." Patches closed his eyes in pain and hissed as blood quickly stained the coat and made a small puddle on the ground. Elizabeth and the others began to crowd around Patches; each one trying to help out in a different way. The mixture of different, loud voices made the pirate's head swim in pain. He raised a shaking hand, grabbed the front of Carrie's shirt and pulled her closer to him with what remaining strength he could muster. Everyone stopped talking at the same time when he brought their attention to himself.

"What are all of you idiots doing? Waiting for an invitation? Go before they catch us all." He croaked as loudly as he could before writhing in pain. Will helped Patches stand up as gently as he could and followed the rest of the crew towards the two rowboats while Marine and her crew stood there in stunned silence. After he placed Patches down onto one of the rowboats and was about to get in, the pirate grabbed Will's wrist.

"I need to speak with Sparrow and Elizabeth. Please." He whispered hoarsely. "We've got no time left. Please tell them to hurry." Will looked at him worriedly and nodded before walking towards Jack and Elizabeth.

"Patches wanted to talk to the two of you. Norrington, Jones and I will be on the other boat." He told them. Jack gave a small nod before swaggering towards the boat where Patches and Carrie were in. Before Elizabeth could follow, Will pulled her towards him and gave her a tight hug. "Be careful Elizabeth." He murmured. Elizabeth smiled at him and brushed her hand across his cheek lovingly.

"You take care of yourself too Will." He smiled back at her then released her from his arms before rushing to the other boat where Norrington and Jones were already in. Elizabeth walked towards where Jack, Carrie and Patches were and settled right beside Carrie. Jack grabbed the oars and after untying the boat from the dock, began to row away from Port Nassau. Their boat was slowly moving further away from the other boat but Patches made no move to speak yet. Carrie took off the blue bandanna tied around his head and used it to wipe away the sweat that began to condense on his forehead. Jack saw his wet mop of black hair and looked at him strangely.

"You seem familiar." He said. Patches gave a short laugh which sounded more like a pained grunt.

"Yes. Unfortunately for me, I do look familiar to you Sparrow. And you've threatened me before in case you've forgotten." He added with a different, yet still familiar voice. Jack narrowed his eyes at Patches then grinned innocently.

"Really? Well that doesn't sound like me." Elizabeth was focusing on the dagger sticking out of Patches' chest and only saw his face up close after Jack spoke up first. She listened to the familiar voice that replied to Jack and widened her eyes. She stared at Patches incredulously; the wound suddenly forgotten.

"_Marine_? Is that you? But...but how? It's impossible! You were just there in front of us and you killed Patches. But you're Patches." She stuttered in shock. The pirate raised a weak hand and took off the patch that covered one eye. Elizabeth's finger reached out to the black spot on the pirate's face and touched it carefully. She put it close to her face, inspected it, and realized that it was simply black soot that had been smothered all over the eye to give it a burnt look. Patches, now revealed as Marine, managed to give her a weak grin when she looked back.

"Well, this has become a bit awkward now that you've found out who I am. That other Marine and I are two entirely different persons though I can't explain why she looks, thinks, acts exactly like me." She turned her head to face Carrie with a sad frown on her face. "I'm sorry about what happened on the other ship Carrie. I wanted to help you out, but if I did then we would both be dead meat. I don't know what that other Marine look-alike did to you but I promise you that I will make her pay for whatever she did." She murmured. Carrie stared at Marine in shock and silence. She had no idea what to make of what she had just learned with everything that's happened to her crumbling down on her all at the same time. Jack, who had been and was still rowing farther and farther from the island, looked at Marine with a serious expression on his face.

"If you're the Marine I had been in prison with, why did you come back? I thought you had gone to your 'other world' or something similar to that." He dropped the oars onto his lap and waved his arms around as he said this. Marine grimaced at the memory of it but before she could answer, Carrie suddenly interjected.

"Jack knows about us being in a different world too?"

"Yes, I told them everything that happened to me while the three of us were marooned on that little island Barbossa sent us to." Marine answered. When Carrie stayed silent, she answered Jack's question. "I didn't want to come back, just so you know. But that was only because I had no idea that Carrie had somehow gotten herself into this mess too. I disappeared from this world before you were supposed to be hanged if you could recall. I arrived back at my own world and found out that I had been gone for more or less a week; it was the same time span of my stay here in this world. A few days later I was suddenly dragged back to Port Royal against my will. Then after asking people for information, I learned that I had arrived back in this world a day after Sparrow's escape from the gallows. And so I went around Port Royal wearing this exact same outfit for a month while I tried to hide myself from Norrington and his guards. And in my search for a way back home, I saw Carrie and Elizabeth being led by a man onto a rowboat. I tried to stop him, and failed as you can see." A cough interrupted her explanation and made her wince in pain. As Carrie listened, more and more ideas began to link with each other.

_So she's the mysterious stranger I saw that night. But how did she get into the ship I was on if she lost the fight?_

Elizabeth listened as well then frowned in concern when she heard the pained cough. "You should stop talking Marine. You need to save your strength." She said.

"I don't need to save strength. I'll live." Marine replied much more softly than before. Elizabeth narrowed her eyes at Marine and looked up at Jack with the same expression on her face.

"What are you doing? You should be rowing us towards the Pearl." Jack blinked and fumbled for the oars when he realized that he had stopped rowing and began the same rhythmic motion again. They all felt the boat move forward once more and looked back at the island anxiously. Marine saw them all looking and chuckled in amusement.

"You don't need to worry about them either. They're not going to chase after us now." She said in a mysterious tone. The three other occupants of the boat stared at her as she coughed once more, this time spitting a bit of blood from her mouth. Her eyelids begun to grow heavy as the seconds passed by. She wanted nothing more than to close her eyes and go to sleep. Jack saw this and barked at her loudly.

"Oh no you don't! You're not allowed to fall asleep. You've lost a lot of blood so if you fall asleep now you risk never waking up. As your captain I order you to stay awake. So open your eyes and be...awake." He told her. Marine drew a raspy, ragged breath before nodding so slightly that it looked like she didn't move her head at all. A moment of silence passed as they continued to make their way for the Pearl. Marine fought to stay awake during that moment of silence. To their relief, Elizabeth caught sight of the large, dark form of the ship growing larger and larger as they moved closer. She looked at Marine with a smile on her face.

"We're almost there Marine! Just hang on a little bit longer." Marine smiled back at her weakly then moved her head towards Jack.

"Sparrow, I have a favor to ask of you."

"Hmm?" The pirate asked, not bothering to correct her for the lack of use of his title. Marine felt even more cheerful as she took note of that fact. She made no comment on it though, knowing that she might not have much time left. Instead she stored the information inside her head to be used when the time comes.

"Make a heading for Tortuga. I'll explain it to you later, when I feel much better..." She mumbled a few more incomprehensible words before she felt her eyelids grow heavy and fell unconscious. Carrie widened her eyes in fear and panic as she felt Marine's head suddenly hung limply to the side.

* * *

Marine's crew stared at the fallen pirate dumbly. They didn't understand what the man had said and didn't understand why their captain reacted that way. They watched as one of Jack's men helped him stand up and followed the rest to the two rowboats that were tied up to the dock. Some of them drew their swords with murderous, blood-thirsty gleams in their eyes and were about to go after the escapees when Marine held up a hand in the air. They looked at her in confusion but stopped. They didn't dare disobey an order from this captain. 

"What are your orders now captain?" One of them asked. Marine's eyes were focused on the people on the rowboat. She watched as Jack and Elizabeth hopped into the one with Carrie and the fallen man. The man who claimed to be Patches had stunned her more than once. She didn't like the fact that there was someone out there who could outsmart her. She clenched her jaw and turned to face what was left of her crew.

"I want one of you to find the others and tell them to get on the ship before sunup. We're leaving anyone who stays behind is that clear?" One of the pirates immediately rushed off into the darkness of the alleyways to do as he was ordered. Once he was gone Marine looked at the rest of her crew. "Get the ship running and ready to sail. As soon as I give the order, we are to leave Port Nassau. Whether we're complete or not." The pirates scuttled about and headed for the ship as fast as they could. While they ran up the gangplank in loud, noisy steps, Maurice stood behind the rails and looked at Marine calmly.

"What has happened?" He asked. Marine glared at him as she walked up onto the ship as well.

"The bloody traitor we had on our ship ruined all my plans." She hissed, walking past Maurice and heading for her cabin. The hooded man turned around and followed her to the largest room in the ship as he listened to her rant on. "He helped Jones with the threat I gave him. He made a distraction to the crew and made them go to Jones' house later than what was planned. He helped Jack and the others escape by risking his own life and had me surprised and stunned continuously with his own little plans."

"A very impressive man." Maurice commented as they reached the front of the captain's quarters. "To have done all this by himself." Marine narrowed her eyes spitefully at Maurice before she opened the door and entered. She walked up to a lantern and lit it up with a match, giving the room a soft, dim glow. She hung the lighted lantern up on a hook found on the ceiling then sat down on the chair and gave a weary sigh.

"Well no matter. I threw my dagger at him. Even if he doesn't die from the stab, he will die with blood loss if they don't move quickly." She said. "It doesn't matter whether he lives or dies when we catch up to them. I'll get my answer either way." There was a knock on the door followed by one of the pirates entering the quarters nervously. Marine looked at him expectantly and in silence, waiting for him to speak. The pirate wiped sweat from his forehead and cleared his throat before he spoke.

"Captain, the rudder chain's been disabled and the rigging's have been ripped apart. We...we didn't realize it sooner because of all the running about town. It will probably take us a few days to get them repaired." He explained. Marine closed her eyes and rubbed her face in frustration. If that was the case, they'd lose track of the Pearl and have no idea where it will be. She gritted her teeth in anger and waved a hand to shoo him away.

"Fine fine fix it up then. Do it as fast as you can or I will give you a reason to do it faster." She threatened. The pirate quickly closed the door, engulfing them in silence again. Marine took out a dagger and threw it at the door angrily. The blade stuck to the frame deeply and didn't fall down. She stood up and slammed her fist on the table.

"Damn it!" She cursed. "He planned all this from the very start! He predicted how I would react to whatever happened. He knows what I would do and planned it all out. He couldn't have thought of all these things. It's impossible! Jack or Will probably would be capable of thinking such an idea but no ordinary pirate would have." She said. Maurice placed a finger to his chin in thought.

"Then perhaps this is no ordinary pirate you are dealing with." He suggested. Marine closed her eyes and massaged her throbbing forehead. Who would know enough of her to predict what she would think and do then plan a way to counter it? She had not been with Jack or Will long enough to make them know her that well and she didn't hang out with anyone long enough either. She continued to massage her forehead when something tugged at her mind and called her attention to it. Her hand stopped moving and she stared at nothing in particular. Maurice watched her in silence, waiting for her to express her idea on the matter.

_"When you've eliminated all the impossible, whatever remains, no matter how improbable, must be the truth."_ She said, repeating a line from one of her favorite fictional character in the other world. Yes, there was no other answer to her question. She knew who Patches was now. Marine couldn't help but laugh aloud at the thought. She scolded herself for not realizing it sooner. She faced Maurice who looked at her with an expression that said he too had known the answer from the start.

"I see. So she decided to reveal herself to us now. I think I will have fun with this little game of ours." She said with a grin.


	10. A Moment of Silence

**AN: **Hello there my lovely readers! I'm so sorry about not updating for a long while. I had to do lots of projects for school and couldn't find the time to do the story. But no worries. I'm still working with the story so expect more chapters to come. For now, read, review and enjoy!

* * *

**_"Please do me another favor and don't talk about it with me right now. I'm not in the mood to discuss plans and ideas after doing nothing but that for the past week. I just want a moment to myself so I can grieve and be sad properly." - Sharpshooter Marine_**

**Chapter 10 - A Moment of Silence**

Gibbs ordered the other men to start moving as he caught sight of two rowboats headed their way. He also noticed someone lying down on the boat and called for the ship's surgeon. Ropes were slung over the yard and fell overboard to where the rowboat stopped a few minutes later. A ladder was thrown to the hull's side as well. Elizabeth and Carrie climbed up the ladder while Jack tied the rope to the rowboat. At his signal, Gibbs and some of the men pulled as hard as they could. The rowboat was slowly and carefully brought up at the deck's level. Once he was able to, Jack carried Marine gently and stepped out of the rowboat. The firstmate got a good look at the person Jack was carrying and widened his eyes in surprise.

"Mother' love! It's Marine." The rest of the crew looked at each other and whispered animatedly. They had never expected to see Marine after so long and were worried at the fact that she had come drenched with blood and with a dagger stabbed to her chest. The surgeon of the Black Pearl moved even quicker than before and was about to take Marine into his arms when Jack swatted him away and moved towards his cabin as fast as he could.

"That's not necessary mate. Go back to your other duties. Elizabeth come with me. Gibbs, as soon as the whelp and the others get on board I want you to make a heading for Tortuga. Don't let them come into my cabin unless I say so." He added. Gibbs nodded and began shouting orders to Jack's crew while Jack, Elizabeth and Carrie went into the captain's quarters. Once Will, Jones and Norrington climbed aboard the Black Pearl and the rowboat was stowed away for future use, the ship sailed even farther away from Port Nassau. The three men stood there dubiously while the rest of the men on board moved about with purpose. They saw Gibbs at the helm shouting orders from time to time and walked up towards him.

"Gibbs." Will called. "Where are Jack and the others?"

"The Captain's at the cabin with Miss Swann and the other lady. They're attending to Marine at the moment so you can't go inside. Captain's orders." Gibbs told him. Will looked at the other two incredulously. They were so confused with what was currently happening.

"Marine? But it was the other man who got injured. Patches was his name I think." Jones said. "Marine actually threw the dagger at Patches. She's at Port Nassau now, probably preparing to catch up with us. She can't be here aboard the Pearl with us." Gibbs shook his head at him.

"I saw it with me own eyes lad. Sharpshooter Marine was being carried by Jack himself, with a dagger stuck on her chest. Blood was all over her coat dripping on the floor." Norrington narrowed his eyes and made his way towards the cabin. Just as he was about to open the door, someone from the inside opened it. Carrie came out and closed the door behind her with a loud click. She looked up at the Commodore and frowned at him.

"Jack knew you were going to do this so he told me to stay here and keep you from going inside." She said. Norrington frowned back at her.

"Why am I not allowed to go inside? That pirate over there claims he's seen an injured Sharpshooter Marine being led into this cabin. I deserve to know what is happening here and I demand to know it now." He said. Will and Jones had caught up to Norrington and were looking at Carrie expectantly.

"Yes. It was Marine. She disguised herself as a pirate called Patches and came aboard the impostor's ship to keep me safe. She was the one who helped me out of prison. She knocked out the pirates who were going to burn the church. She risked her life so that everyone could escape. She is not the Marine who kidnapped me, burned your ship, and attempted to blackmail Jones. There. Are you happy now?" She spat. "As soon as you're satisfied with that, Captain Jack Sparrow orders you to help out the crew. So do it before he decides to throw you out into the water." Norrington's eyes gleamed with fresh anger and his hands clenched into tight fists. But he made no other move to get into the cabin. Instead he turned around and walked away. Carrie's shoulders slumped down as she heaved a sigh of relief. Will and Jones still looked at her in confusion.

"What on earth is going on here?" Will asked to no one in particular. "How can there be two Marines at the same time?" Carrie shook her head.

"I'm just as lost to that as you are Will. But I believe that this Marine is the real Marine. The one you met before this happened." Will looked behind Carrie at the door, as if seeing something else, and shook his head slightly.

"I don't know what to believe anymore. All I want is to go home, forget all this, and get married to Elizabeth." He said. Carrie gave him a sympathetic look and was about to open her mouth when the door opened once more. Jack and Elizabeth came out of the room bearing bloody towels and saw the three looking at them expectantly.

"She will be fine." Elizabeth told Carrie. "It was a deep cut, but Jack managed to sew it up and bandage it firmly. She's asleep now so let's not disturb her." She said. Carrie smiled and heaved another sigh of relief. Jack passed the towels he held to a pirate who was passing by and moved past them all towards the galley. Elizabeth handed what she held to the pirate as well before following Jack together with the others. Norrington saw them headed downstairs and after tying up a rope firmly, made his way there as well. Jack opened one of the cupboards and took out a bottle of rum. He uncorked the bottle and took a large sip before sitting down on one of the chairs. The others sat in the midst of Jack and looked at him.

"What do you plan on doing now Jack?" Jones asked.

"Marine has requested me to make a heading for Tortuga so that's where we're headed." Will and Norrington widened their eyes in surprise and spoke up at the same time.

"You're not planning on breaking your word are you Jack?"

"Since when do you take other's requests for no reason at all?" Jack sighed and rolled his eyes at the two of them.

"Don't be so uptight about it! I promised to take you back to your lovely abode and I will. But I get to decide how we're headed there. I agreed to take you aboard my ship but I never agreed to take the three of you to Port Royal immediately." Both Will and Norrington frowned at this, knowing that Jack was right. "You have nothing to worry about being delayed in your lovely wedding William. You will make it in time. Trust me." He added with a sly grin. The blacksmith still doubted it, but made no comment about it. Jones looked at Jack curiously.

"Marine told you to take us to Tortuga?"

"Aye."

"Then she knows." He murmured. "She probably listened to me while I made my deal with the other Marine at the Sailor's Cove. She must be mad!" Jones cried as he stood up and paced the floor. "How could she be so foolish as to go to the very place the other Marine would likely find us? She should be trying to find a way to hide, not to go after whatever it is the other Marine's after." He said. Jack looked at Jones with an interested look on his face.

"What did the other Marine ask from you? What was your deal with her?" Everyone else looked at Jones curiously, awaiting his answer. Jones bit his lip nervously then sighed and hung his head down reluctantly.

"She gave me a very large bag of gold and asked me to go with her to Tortuga. When we got there I was to use my thieving skills and steal a certain map from this man who lived in the outskirts of town. She gave me no reason as to why I should steal it or where the map leads to. She just told me to do it and promised more gold if I did. I wasn't about to decline her offer then. It was a simple task and the money would help me out so I agreed to do it." Jack rubbed his chin thoughtfully and drank from his bottle of rum. Norrington narrowed his eyes and crossed his arms.

"I say we forget this trip and head for Port Royal now."

"Whoah, whoah there mate! I'm the captain of this ship so it will be my word we be following, savvy?" Jack interjected, waving his arms about flamboyantly. "And I say we let Marine explain her reason for going to Tortuga before we make any real decisions. The way to Tortuga is close to the way to Port Royal so we can still change our heading if we should ever change our minds. See? No need to make such hasty decisions now Commodore." He said. Norrington glared at him but nodded in agreement. Jack grinned and stood up after finishing his bottle. He left it on the table and moved towards the stairs while everyone still sat there and stared at him.

"I shall be at the helm if anyone needs me." He said. "Why don't you go up and help the crew with their duties? That ought to make things sail smoother and probably faster." He added to them before disappearing above on the deck. Norrington and Will stood up from their seats and moved to go up as well while Jones sat there casually. Elizabeth and Carrie looked at him in confusion.

"Aren't you going to help them out?" Carrie asked. Jones grimaced as he grabbed the empty bottle and threw it outside the window.

"Me? Help out in sailing a ship?" He gave out a chuckle at that. "I'm a landlubber, not a sea lover. I know nothing about sails, riggings, mast and all that stuff. Get me to steal something and I'll do it. But making me help them sail a ship would be pretty pointless." He explained. "I'll just go ask Jack where the extra rooms are. I've gotten tired after all that running and fighting." He said as he moved to go up as well.

* * *

The priest's words as he dictated his lines in a monotone voice barely registered in Marine's head as she stared at the coffin in front of her. She looked around her in confusion as she saw people she knew and loved crying or murmuring in low, mournful voices. She didn't understand what was happening. Her parent's funeral had already ended didn't it? From what she remembered, they had already been buried. She turned to face one of her co-workers and reached out a hand to him as she opened her mouth to ask him a question. She got the surprise of her life when her whole hand passed through him. She drew her hand back in panic and stared at it. She held it with her other hand to make sure it was solid. While she inspected her hand she didn't notice someone coming up from behind her. A strange feeling ran through her whole body as she actually felt someone pass through her. She stared at Carrie, dressed in all black, crying loudly as she walked up to the coffin. She opened her mouth and tried to call out to her but couldn't find her voice. She widened her eyes as she listened to Carrie talk. 

"Oh why did you have to die Vanessa? Why did you leave me here now?" She cried. Marine wanted to shout, to tell her that she was alive and was standing right there. But it was as if her voice had been taken away from her. No matter how hard she tried, she couldn't make a sound from her throat. She couldn't believe what was happening. She wasn't dead. She couldn't be. She saw Carrie look at the coffin and cried aloud as she sunk to her knees. She stared at the coffin, and didn't realize until later that her legs began to move towards it. The priest was still talking but his words were lost to Marine. She only saw the box and the open space that revealed the face of the corpse. Her legs began to shake as she came nearer and nearer to the coffin. Her hands trembled as she touched the edge of the coffin and leaned her head to look inside. She saw her own pale face inside the coffin. She was in her best clothes with her hands lying on top of her chest. Marine stared at her own body incredulously and almost fell to the ground in shock.

_This...this is impossible._

The corpse's eyes suddenly shot open. It stared at Marine and its lips curled into a sadistic, twisted grin as it laughed a maniacal laugh. No one noticed what was happening; everyone was still listening to the priest and mourning for her. Both of the corpse's hands appeared out of the coffin and grabbed Marine's throat. A silent scream escaped her throat as she grabbed the corpse's wrist and tried to pry it away from her. All around her she could hear the same evil laugh echoing throughout the room. The last thing she could remember was the corpse as it spoke to her.

**_"Hello Vanessa."_**

Marine opened her eyes and gave a loud gasp as she shot up from the bed she was lying on. Her chest moved up and down quickly and her hand flew straight to her neck as she tried to regain her normal breathing rhythm. Her breath shook together with her whole body as she forced herself to recover from the nightmare; the feel of the corpse's hands on her and the sound of its laughter was still fresh in her mind. Beads of sweat fell from her forehead down to her chin where it fell and landed on the sheet that covered her. She closed her eyes and tried to remove the frightening image of her dead corpse out of her mind. When she felt a little bit better, she tossed the bed sheet to the side and placed her feet on the wooden floor. She could feel the whole room sway in a slow beat and deduced that she was on the Black Pearl. When she looked around the room she saw the black coat she had taken and worn lying on the chair while her black high-heeled shoes lay below it. At seeing the shoes she grimaced and rubbed her feet; and decided against wearing it. She got out of the bed, took the coat from the chair, and walked out of the room into the dark night.

Jack was walking back from the crew's quarters, where he had just reprimanded his crew for giving Norrington a hard time (not as seriously and as genuinely as Norrington would have hoped), and was headed for his quarters and check up on Marine. He walked with a bottle of rum in his hand and a frown on his face, the swagger lost in his irritation. Last night was hard on him since Marine was injured and shouldn't be moved about. He couldn't sleep on his own bed and so had to deal with sleeping on his chair or out on the deck. That night he decided to take charge of the helm so he could do something aside from trying to fall asleep. He wanted Marine to wake up so badly so she could go and sleep together with the crew or with Carrie and Elizabeth who were sharing an extra cabin on his ship. Then again, having Marine sleep in his cabin would be a good thing; if she was awake and willing that is. At this thought Jack couldn't help but make a sly grin.

He reached his own cabin and went inside to find his bed empty. It took him a few seconds before he realized that Marine was awake and was gone from his quarters. He grumbled some more and went back out to look for her. He stopped right below the crow's nest and looked up in consideration. He knew that it was her favorite spot on the ship but also knew that Marine was still too weak to climb up. He silently debated on whether to go up or not and decided to go and check anyways. He placed his bottle of rum beside the mast and grunted as he hoisted himself up higher and higher from the ground. When he reached the crow's nest he saw that it was empty to his annoyance. He went back down on deck, grabbed his bottle, and went to the galley to get some more rum. He came down into the dark and saw Marine's form sitting on one of the chairs with a bottle of rum in her own hand.

"You could have told someone that you were awake you know." He said, making the female pirate turned her head towards him sharply. "You were asleep for the whole day yesterday and made everyone assume the worst. Letting us know that you're still alive would make the rest of us feel less worried about you. And I wouldn't have had to waste my time going up the crow's nest to look for you." She sighed and stared at her bottle of rum.

"I'm sorry. I just didn't feel like talking to anyone at the moment."

"Well too late for that love." Jack said as he moved to the seat beside her. He drank the bottle of rum until there was nothing left in it then threw it out of the small window in the room." As a pirate you should have known that there is no such thing as privacy. If we, say for instance, go to my cabin and have our dastardly way with each other, the whole crew would know about it the next morning." He continued. Marine laughed at that and smiled at him.

"I'm sure you'd love to do that, don't you?"

"Perhaps." Jack replied with a shrug. "Or we could sit here and talk to each other like respected, civilized individuals of high society." He added with a hint of noble mockery in his tone. "Not that I would mind doing the first, of course. The first choice is always the better one."

"I'm sticking with the second." Marine muttered. Jack clapped his hands cheerfully.

"A wonderful idea! Let's sit here and talk about considering the first choice. How about that?" He suggested with an innocent grin. Marine narrowed her eyes at him and sighed as she shook her head at him in disbelief. She took another huge gulp from her bottle of rum before putting it down and heaving a heavy sigh. "Norrington's not happy about the fact that we're headed for Tortuga now. Will's not angry, but he's not happy either. He's impatient to go back to Port Royal and prepare some more for his wedding with Lizzie." He told her. Marine sighed and rubbed her forehead.

"Please do me another favor and don't talk about it with me right now. I'm not in the mood to discuss plans and ideas after doing nothing but that for the past week." She murmured. "I just want a moment to myself so I can grieve and be sad properly." Jack looked at her incredulously.

"That doesn't sound right. You want to be sad and to grieve? _Properly_?" He asked. Marine looked ahead of her with sad, mournful eyes.

"Yes. They deserve that much from me at least. I found out that my foster parents died when I came back to my own world." She explained. "They were robbed and killed. When I went to the funeral, the police-or guards for your better understanding-came and wanted to speak to me. They were suspicious of me because of my disappearance and Carrie's sudden disappearance when I reappeared. Then I was brought back to this world right after they were buried. I feel so bad for being so rude to them after all they've done to me. I even dreamed of myself as a corpse during my own funeral." Jack placed a hand on her shoulder and smiled at her sympathetically.

"Don't be so hard on yourself love. If they knew about all this I'm sure they'll understand."

"Doesn't mean it will make everything right."

"It doesn't. It just helps you feel better. A little bit." Jack grabbed her bottle and took a drink from that before continuing. "You don't have to force yourself to be sad or to grieve for them. Your parents wouldn't want you to do that. They'd want you to be happy and free and all that. Explore the world, drink rum, get treasures, have fun." He said, waving his hands wide and almost hitting Marine. She ducked as his hand flew past her and narrowed her eyes at him.

"Just because you run away from all your troubles and pretend that they never existed doesn't mean that I should do the same." She said with anger. "What would you want people to do if you died?"

"Why remember me of course! But I wouldn't want any of them to cry their hearts out for me." He replied. "Just because I'm dead doesn't mean everyone has to feel so down about it. And moving on with your life doesn't mean you're running away from what has happened. What about you? What would you want people to do if you died? What would you want Carrie to do?" He asked her. Marine took a drink from her bottle then looked down at the floor.

"I'd want her to move on. I wouldn't want her to bring herself down just because I died."

"It normal for people to feel sad about the ones they love. But it's also normal for said loved ones to wish the best for the people they left in the living. So why not just do what your love ones wish for you as a last request for them? I don't understand why you're making such a big deal out of it." He muttered then realized what he said and winced. Marine glared at him with hatred and stood up from her chair, leaving her half-empty bottle of rum on the table. Before she could walk away Jack got out of his chair and grabbed her wrist.

"Let go of me Sparrow." Marine spat angrily without looking at him.

"I'm sorry about what I said earlier love. It was just a slip of the tongue. I never meant for that to come out." Jack said apologetically.

"The fact is, you thought of it. I knew you were a cold-hearted bastard, but it's only now that I realized you have no heart at all. Leave me alone and pretend that I never existed. That's what you usually do when things don't go your way right?" She jerked her hand away from his grasp and took another step before Jack grabbed her wrist again and pulled her back. Marine turned around to face him and opened her mouth to shout at him when Jack covered it with his own. Marine widened her eyes in shock then quickly recovered as she tried to push Jack away while he wrapped his arms around her even tighter. The pirate had a strong hold on her and she was too weak to get out of his grip. She surrendered to the kiss after a while just as Jack pulled away. She was breathing hard as she glared at him. Jack stared back at her with sincere eyes.

"I truly am sorry for what I said. I can see how your parents mean so much to you and although I don't feel the same for my own, I understand how you feel about losing something that you love." When Marine didn't try to pull away or get away from him he continued. "Not to offend you or anything, but I had thought your practicality and your dislike for crying and sad thoughts would let you realize what I said earlier about not being too depressed."

"Sometimes it's better to think with your heart rather than your brain." She answered him. "Else you'll go mad or worse." Jack grinned at that.

"Is that so? Well that explains it." He said in a teasing manner. Marine narrowed her eyes at him but Jack saw the gleam of amusement that twinkled in her eyes and knew that she wasn't as angry as she wanted to be.

"Explains what Sparrow?"

"That you're just as daft as I am of course!"

"I'm taking that as an insult." She pointed out with an angry pout. Jack chuckled and brushed her cheek with the back of his hand.

"Sure you do love, sure you do." He mumbled. Marine could feel her heart going up her throat as she felt his calloused hand on her skin. Her arms and her back tingled with a strange sensation and her stomach did flipflops and somersaults. That was when she realized how close she was to Jack and stepped away from him in embarrassment. A tinge of pink decorated her cheeks and she fought hard to keep it from showing. Jack stood there and sensed her discomfort. He moved past her towards the stairs and looked over his shoulder as he stepped on the first step.

"Come with me to the helm. Since you're not planning on going to sleep, you might as well do something." He told her. Marine watched as he walked up on deck and followed him out. She smelled the fresh, salty air and closed her eyes in relaxation.

"I love the sea at night. It feels so peaceful, so tranquil, so perfect." She said as she stood beside Jack. The pirate looked at her and smiled.

"I love it better when I stand behind the wheel and watch as the sun comes up over the horizon. The sky and the clouds glow a wonderful shade of red and orange and makes the sea glitter and shine brightly as the waves continued brushing against the ship." He said. Marine looked at him and raised an eyebrow in amusement.

"I never thought you'd appreciate things like that. For a moment there you actually sounded poetic." She teased. Jack scoffed at her as he moved towards the helm and placed his hands firmly on the wheel. Marine felt a bit more cheerful after her episode with Jack earlier and skipped happily towards him. "Sparrow's got a soft spot! Sparrow's got a soft spot! He's such a romantic, sensitive and emotional man!" She cried then laughed aloud to herself. Jack narrowed his eyes at her and turned his head away from her.

"That's Captain Jack Sparrow to you love."

"As long as you call me love, I call you Sparrow. Besides, you didn't oppose me when I addressed you as Sparrow while we were on the rowboat. You seem to actually like it if I call you Sparrow." She said with a smug grin on her face. Jack blinked and furrowed his brows as he tried to remember when he did that. When he remembered, he pushed the thought aside and pretended not to recall.

"Alright then. I'll call you Maria." That made Marine freeze in her tracks. Jack looked at her curiously as his lips curled wider and wider into a very large grin.

"I've been wondering if Marine was your real name. Now I know that Maria is." He said. Marine narrowed her eyes at him and crossed her arms.

"And what makes you so sure that it is my real name?"

"Your reaction proves it! You're real name is Maria. Why try to hide it otherwise?"

"I'm not hiding it because it's not my real name. If you want to know my real name, it's Vanessa Silvestre."

"That's the name you take in your own world. I want to know your real name here in this world."

"It's Marine!"

"No it isn't, it's Maria. And from now on, I'll call you Maria just because you don't want me calling you that." Marine gritted her teeth and tried to swat Jack with her hand. But Jack saw it coming and ducked away from her before he got hit. He stood in front of her with a large grin on his face. "Don't be so upset Maria. It's not such a bad name." He said. Marine gave one low growl before chasing Jack around the helm and laughing as she did. The two of them ran around then fought swords with each other before falling to the ground and breathing heavily. They leaned against the rail and looked up at the sky peacefully. Marine let her head rest on Jack's shoulder and gave a soft sigh. Jack's eyes glanced at her sideways as he inconspicuously placed his hand around her waist.

"My father, Black Jack, used to tell me that the people who love you the most; those who have passed on to the afterlife, are right there, among those stars, watching over you and guiding you." She said, either ignoring Jack's closeness or accepting it. "I believe him and I hope that when they all look at me now, they would be happy of what I've become." Jack stayed silent as he looked up at the sky as well; his mind beginning to wander off to thoughts about his own parents. Marine sensed his deep thinking and looked at him in concern.

"Are you alright Sparrow? You don't look well." She said. He jerked back to himself as he heard Marine's voice and glanced at her with a surprised look.

"'Course I'm alright! Why wouldn't I be? I'm Captain Jack Sparrow." He said proudly. Marine rolled her eyes at him but kept quiet. As if to assure her and himself that he was fine, Jack pointed up towards the sky at a certain direction.

"Speaking of stars, do you see those group of stars over there? If you connect some of them to form a picture, you'll see the figure of a hunter standing against the black sky. That is the constellation Orion." He explained. Marine looked up at the sky at where Jack was pointing and squinted her eyes. Then she frowned at him.

"It doesn't look anything like that. How would you know if it was the constellation Orion?" Jack smiled at her in amusement and raised a finger like one who is about to give a lecture to his student.

"I know because I have been taught how to look at the stars in a certain way. Like that one over there" He said, pointing at another direction. "That one has two persons holding hands together." Marine tried to look and imagine the picture formed by the stars then frowned and sighed when she still couldn't see it.

"I can't see it but you're most likely talking about constellation Gemini."

"Aye Maria, that it is." Jack then looked at Marine with one eyebrow raised curiously. "How would you know that if you couldn't even see what it is?"

"I live in the future Sparrow. I know all about the constellations. Especially the constellations of the zodiac. They're famously known around the world in our time by attributing each one to the month that you were born in. Then we have fun and pretend to see what the future holds for us through the positions of the constellations of our zodiac and the zodiac of that specific month. For example, I was born around the third week of February. Therefore I'm an Aquarius. When's your birthday Sparrow?" She asked him, tilting her head to the side in curiosity. Jack scratched his head, grinned innocently at her then pointed up at the sky.

"There's Aquarius over there. And that's Leo on the other side. And Scorpius. We can't forget that." He began. Marine narrowed her eyes and scooted away from him. She enjoyed lying on his shoulder and feeling safe and protected in his arms-though she denies that fact to herself greatly-but she wasn't going to let him push her around. Marine didn't notice a frown that quickly passed over Jack's face as he felt her move away from him.

"What's wrong with telling me when your birthday is? What do you think I'll do with it? Curse your month and make you unlucky for the rest of your life?" She asked rhetorically. Jack shrugged his shoulders at her.

"I've seen worse, unbelievable things happen to me before. There's a likely chance that it will happen." He said. "Or worse, you'll plan one of those 'surprise' parties for me or something similar to that." He added softly to himself. Marine rolled her eyes at him.

"No I'm not going to curse your month. If I was capable of cursing I would save myelf the trouble and curse you instead of your month." Jack frowned but Marine didn't let him speak up. "So tell me when your birthday is so I can tell you what zodiac sign you are." She said. She wasn't going to stoop to begging him for the answer. Begging to know something as trivial as that was something her pride won't let her do. Jack pursed his lips and tapped his head to his finger in thought then smiled at her.

"I coincide with the constellation of Virgo. That's all I'm saying." He said. Marine raised an eyebrow suspiciously.

"You probably just said that because Virgo is the symbol of a virgin. And that zodiac appeals to you the most." Jack feigned a look of surprise.

"I did not! I had no idea that a beautiful, innocent virgin would be the symbol for Virgo." He said with obvious mockery. Marine tried to frown and look angry at him but failed to keep it that way. Her lips kept twitching into a grin as she looked at him. Jack saw her smile and smiled back at her. Finally the female pirate gave up being mad at Jack and stood up from the ground.

"Well I'm tired of just sitting around and doing nothing after sleeping for more than 24 hours. I'll take the helm now. You can go to your own, beloved, warm and comfy bed in your own quarters. You were probably forced to sleep elsewhere ever since I came here. I bet you'd love to have your own bed and your own cabin all to your onesies again." She said. Jack stood up as well then looked at her mischievously.

"What I would really love would be for you to go to my cabin with me and keep me company the rest of the night." He said as he wriggled his eyebrows suggestively. Marine wrinkled her nose and stuck her tongue out in disgust before speaking to him.

"Get lost Sparrow." Jack chuckled in amusement before walking down from the helm and moving towards the captain's quarters. Marine stood before the wheel and shook her head in disbelief before watching him walk away with a smile on her face.

* * *

Carrie woke up just as the sun rose up from the horizon. She blinked as she adjusted to the light in the cabin and rubbed the eyes from her sleep. She sat up from where she had slept and looked around. The other bed where Elizabeth had slept was empty and made up already. She tossed the blanket that covered her to the side and got out of the bed. She had forgotten where she was and almost tripped as she lost her balance from the sway of the ship. She brought her hand to the wall and steadied herself. Once she was sure that she wouldn't fall down, she pulled back her hand from the wall and walked out of the cabin into the upper deck. 

Everyone was out working or moving about when she went out of the cabin. She saw Gibbs at the helm, steering the wheel and giving commands to the rest of the crew from time to time. As she looked around more, she noticed that Jack and the others were nowhere to be found on deck. A look of puzzlement came on her face as her head swiveled around in search of them. The pirate named Carter saw her while he was working on his duties. He passed a rope to one of the other men and walked up to her.

"The capt'n and the others are down at the galley miss." He said. Carrie smiled at him gratefully and thanked him before walking down the stairs below deck. When she arrived at the galley she saw everyone sitting around a table with some plates of food. What caught her attention was Marine who was sitting beside Jack and trying to grab the bottle of rum that Jack had. She widened her eyes as she stared at her dumbly. Marine sensed someone looking at her and turned around to face Carrie with one eyebrow raised.

"What?" Carrie blinked as she came back to her senses. She rushed towards Marine and hugged her tightly.

"Vanessa!! I'm so glad you're alright! You didn't wake up the whole day yesterday so I thought you were going to die and I was so worried about you. Everyone was just as worried about you, you know. I can't believe you would do such a crazy and stupid thing like that! How could you make everyone worry so much like that? If things didn't turn out the way they did I would have beaten you up for being so foolish! How did you manage to escape the evil Marine's clutches and rescue me from her? Everything is so confusing and I want to know answers now." She said almost all in one breath as she shook Marine violently. Jack, Will, Elizabeth, Jones and Norrington stared at Carrie as she spoke with Marine. The female pirate grabbed Carrie's wrist and pulled them away from her.

"Slow down Carrie! You're going to kill me if you keep doing that." She said as she placed the other woman's hands on her sides. "I was going to talk about it with everyone here but we were all waiting for you to come." She explained. Carrie blushed a slight tinge of red when Marine said that. She finally took notice of everyone who was still looking at her and smiled at them nervously.

"Uh...oops. Sorry about that." She moved to a vacant seat in between Elizabeth and Marine and smiled gratefully at Jones who passed her a plate. As she ate in silence, she listened to the conversations of the others. Norrington began as he looked at Marine expectantly.

"So let's start off with you answering some of our questions. How did you manage to get on board that ship without that pirate knowing of it?" He asked. He wasn't planning on letting his guard down around the female pirate. Even though there was enough proof of the fact, he still couldn't believe that there are two Sharpshooter Marines roaming around the Caribbean. Marine grinned at him and crossed her arms smugly.

"Well that's an easy one. I was at Port Royal the whole time you know. I never left it at all. So let's see...one month passed after Jack and I escaped the hanging. I saw Carrie and Elizabeth being taken by a pirate, tried to save them but failed to and ended up being thrown into the brig of a ship by guards. Then I saw you and Will and talked with the two of you." She laughed as she saw the reactions of Will's and Norrington's faces. "John Knightley was pissed off at the fact that he wasn't released from the brig. He had to go through a lot of trouble to get the guard to go inside the cell. Then he hopped into the other ship and pretended to be part of the crew just as Marine and the others cornered the two of you. Now isn't that interesting?" She told them. "Any more questions?" Norrington glared at Marine and was about to open his mouth when Jack raised a finger at him.

"Tut. Tut. As your captain I order you not to speak badly of our lovely Maria. After all, if it wasn't for her, we would all be under the evil Marine's command now." He pointed out. Norrington's anger softened but didn't disappear. Jack drunk the remaining contents of his bottle of rum and threw it out of the window again before looking at Marine. "I have a question for you Maria." Marine twitched at the name but ignored it and let Jack go on. "What's the purpose of our lovely trip to Tortuga? It wouldn't happen to involve Jones' deal with the other Marine would it?" He asked. Marine's irritation on Jack disappeared as she looked at him in confusion.

"Jones' deal? I don't know anything about that deal except for the fact that they had one. I asked you to take me to Tortuga because I was going to find someone and speak with him concerning this matter." She said. "Why? What was the deal about?" She looked at Jones as she asked this.

"I was to go to Tortuga and find this man who owned a map. I was to steal it from him and give it to the other Marine." He explained. Marine frowned as she let the information sink in.

"This just gives me all the more reason to go to Tortuga and find the man I'm looking for. He has been through a lot over the years. His knowledge on the supernatural and everything else on that subject is impressively profound. I would like to know more about it from him." She said. Norrington couldn't keep to himself any longer and glared at her even more intensely.

"Have you no consideration for the people who want to have nothing to do with you or our plans? I do not wish to be part of whatever it is you plan to do now or in the near future. But because of you and your selfish goals, Sharpshooter Marine will know where we are and try to kill us all." He said. Will and Elizabeth looked at Norrington in disapproval. They wanted to go back home as much as Norrington did but they still felt sympathy for the female pirate. Marine clenched her hands into fists and gritted her teeth as she glared back at him.

"Look, I'm not going to ask you to do something that you're not willing to do. I never planned on bringing you or anyone else along with me. I'm no idiot. I know how dangerous it would be for you and everyone else if you joined me in my attempt to kill off this impostor. I just want to be dropped off at Tortuga that's all. Do you have any problems with that you pompous ass?" She hissed at him. Jack placed an arm in front of Marine; afraid that she would attack the Commodore viciously if he didn't.

"There shall be no fighting on my ship unless I say so is that clear? Now I want everybody to listen to me; the Captain of the Black Pearl if anyone can still recall. We shall go to Tortuga, let Maria do her business there then bring the Commodore and the others back to Port Royal. Afterwards I shall do my best to assist Maria in every possible way." He said, smiling at her and giving her a wink. Marine widened her eyes and stared at him in surprise.

"You're...you're going to help me?" She asked him incredulously. She narrowed her eyes at him suspiciously. "What's in that head of yours Sparrow? What do you want to get in return? You never agree on anything without having some sort of plan on your own." Jack looked at her innocently, which was obviously not authentic.

"One Maria is enough for me. I want to help you kill this impostor." He said. The suspicious expression on Marine's face never disappeared while Jack grinned at her in silence. Finally Marine sighed and shook her head slightly.

"Fine. I'm not going to press further on that. So are we all settled in heading for Tortuga now?" She asked, giving Norrington a spiteful glare. Everyone nodded in reply; even Norrington himself, although his was with reluctance. Jack smiled at everyone as he stood up from his chair and rubbed his hands dry.

"Well then. If there is nothing further to discuss, I believe this ship needs a captain to 'captain' it."


	11. Her Father's Grave

**AN:**Yo. Got a lot of suspended classes so I got the chance to catch up with the story and all. Hope you like this one and hope you R&R. Enjoy!

* * *

**_"Go to your father's grave and use your name to look for my home. If you are who I think you are then you'll surely find it." - mysterious man_**

**Chapter 11 - Her Father's Grave**

Carrie felt time fly past her so quickly that before she knew it, they were sliding in between two other ships onto the docks of the infamous island, Tortuga. Jack ordered Gibbs and Carter to keep an eye on the ship while he told the rest of his men to relax for the night. The crew were glad to have a break and couldn't wait to get onto land and find some special company or some tavern with lots of mugs of rum. Marine looked just as eager to get on land and look for the man she spoke of. Before they saw the island, Carrie and Marine were sitting together up at the crow's nest and simply sharing each other's experiences on the world of pirates.

_"So that was why I was a person who existed in this world even if I wasn't in this world physically. If that made any sense at all." Marine finished. "I didn't tell you about it because at the time I assumed that it was what it was; just a simple dream. I ignored them and just let them come when they do come. I only gave them importance when I came to this world." She added. Carrie nodded slowly then looked up at the sky._

_"It makes sense to me. What I don't get is how it happened. I mean, how did you manage to be in two places; two different alternative worlds at once?" Marine shrugged in reply._

_"Who knows? That's probably one of the mysteries of life that we'll never have an answer for."_

_"Do you think this man, the man you said had lots of knowledge in the supernatural, has any idea of what happened to you?"_

_"I don't know. I'm more worried of the fact that we might not even meet him here. News of him just came to my ears during one of the many times I've been at taverns with the other men. I only have a name and a vague idea of where he lives. There is a very big possibility that we won't find him in Tortuga." She explained. Carrie frowned at this._

_"What are you going to do if you can't find the man?" She asked her. Marine closed her eyes, leaned her head back against the post, and reveled in the quiet, peaceful breeze that brushed past them and played with the strands of both women's hair. Once the wind had passed, she looked back at Carrie._

_"I don't know." She murmured softly. Another strong gust of wind brushed past the two women, filling up the silence that engulfed them. Carrie stared at her best friend for a short while before looking back at the sky. It felt strange to her to hear one of the people she admired the most say that she wasn't as all-knowing as she turned out to be. It was never spoken out loud, but Marine, otherwise known to her as Vanessa, knew a lot more than Carrie ever would. But there were still expectations in Carrie on just how much Marine should know. It disappointed her a little to find that she couldn't depend on her for answers any longer. After a while Marine stood up and began to climb down the ropes._

_"I think I see Tortuga ahead. Let's go down and see if we can do something to help speed things up." She said. Carrie nodded in agreement and gingerly climbed after Marine to the deck._

Jack's crew were busy placing the plank in between the ship and the port as everyone gathered close on deck. Everyone, even Carrie and Elizabeth brought along with them weapons in case someone would attack them during their stay in Tortuga. It wouldn't surprise them it if does happen. Marine kept the dagger she's been using at Port Nassau and planned to put it aside as soon as she got to her home. She turned around to face the others.

"Before I go look for this man, I have to go home and fix myself up. So if you don't want to come along with me I suggest you stay at the Faithful Bride and wait for me there." Jack rubbed his chin with his hand in a thoughtful manner.

"Wait at the tavern, and miss this chance to see what Sharpshooter Marine's-otherwise known as Maria-home looks like? Never!" He said with a grin on his face. Carrie nodded vigorously in agreement, wondering what Marine's home in this world looked like. Marine simply shrugged in reply and turned eagerly ahead as they heard the plank plop onto the cobblestone ground ashore. Jack clapped his hands cheerfully and was about to take a step forward when he remembered something and looked back at the group.

"Are you lot coming ashore with us?" Jack asked Norrington and the others.

"Of course we're coming! We're worried about Marine and we want to know how you plan to get rid of that other Marine." Elizabeth said, with Will nodding in agreement. Jones gave a soft mumble and a look that said he was coming too.

"I might as well come along and find out for myself just what exactly is going on." Norrington said when everyone looked at him expectantly. It was Jack's turn to shrug before walking down the plank onto the unmoving ground while the rest of his crew were still making last minute adjustments on the ship. Marine moved ahead of Jack and made her way through the rowdy streets towards the silent ones with knowing steps. Jack and the rest followed her behind.

It was Carrie's first time to actually see Tortuga in the flesh so she was amazed at everything she saw. It was everything that she had imagined and more. Drunken pirates and thugs walked along the streets, sometimes holding a bottle of rum, sometimes with an arm around two whores who were giggling and flirting with the men. She could hear a lot of shouts, laughter, gunshots and sword fights within alleyways and inside the lit taverns that reeked of sweat, rum and blood. She wrinkled her nose at the smell but didn't put much attention to them. Marine was walking beside her and smiled when she saw the young woman's face.

"It's everything you've imagined isn't it? Even I had to believe that I wasn't in a studio of some sort when I was here." She told her softly so that the others couldn't hear. Carrie looked at Marine and grinned.

"Can we go into one of the taverns later? I wanna see what it looks like inside and feel what it's like to be part of a pirate crew." Marine frowned at that and avoided Carrie's hopeful gaze.

"Uh...well maybe later...if you know, we're not busy and all." She muttered. Carrie didn't take note of Marine's face and smiled excitedly, thinking that she would get a chance to go into one of the taverns and watch pirates fight each other. They went on through the streets past all of the taverns, inns and brothels towards a much quieter and much darker-looking part of Tortuga where only the moonlight guided their path. It was where the rich men lived in great mansions and well-tended gardens. Everyone but Jack, Jones and Marine gaped at the lots they passed by.

"I never knew that there was such a part as this in a town like Tortuga." Will said as he noted a beautifully sculpted statue positioned at the center of the open garden of one of the houses. Marine gave a dry, sardonic chuckle at that.

"There isn't one like it in the whole of the Caribbean. This is Tortuga; the island where pirates, thugs, thieves and criminals roam freely without any fear of authority. Who do you think lives in those large mansions?" She asked rhetorically. Will quickly understood what Marine meant and looked at the houses in a new light. How many valuable, priceless things were stolen, how many innocent men were killed for these men to afford the luxury that they now posses? Carrie grimaced at them and decided that they weren't as beautiful as they first seemed to be. Jones looked at one and shook his head regretfully from side to side.

"Such a waste of money. To simply buy large, showy ornaments that aren't even useful to only one man or a couple of them."

"That's the point of stealing that much; of risking it all." Jack replied in an emotionless tone. "It's all just for show to impress others who can't afford the same things." They passed all of these houses in a melancholic mood and were glad to see the end of it up ahead. As they moved on through the path, they saw a large group of men crowding around in front of them. The shortest of them, supposedly the leader of that group, took one step forward and pointed at Jack's group with his drawn sword.

"There he is! After him!" He shouted. The men surrounding the leader gave a loud, blood-thirsty roar and charged after them. The ground shook with their heavy footsteps as they ran towards the group. Norrington and Will were about to unsheath their swords when both Jack and Marine turned around the other way and began running away. The others looked at them in question but had no time to ask as the other men were slowly getting nearer. They followed behind Jack and Marine and heard their argument over the noise of the crowd behind them.

"What the hell did you do to them Sparrow?!"

"I don't remember! I probably stole something that they consider valuable."

"You stole something from the richest man in Tortuga?! Are you mad?! That man practically owns Tortuga with all that money he has."

"Actually, I am! Haven't you heard of Gibb's term, 'daft as Jack'?"

"You're daft alright. As daft as blazing, bloody, friggin' Norrington crossdressing as a prostitute and looking for a Navy officer to sleep with him in the governor's mansion while the governor himself is out looking for pleasurable company!" Jack paused to ponder on how Marine managed to say that long sentence in one breath while running around then shook his head and got back to where they left off.

"That doesn't even make sense!"

"Since when do you not make sense of something?! You're the one always twisting your words around and confusing people."

If the others weren't running as fast as they could from armed and dangerous men, they would have been amused with the ongoing argument of the two pirates. But since they were placed in that situation, all they could think of was to run and stay alive for as long as possible. While they were running, another group of men crowded around in front of them and raised their swords excitedly.

"There she is! After her!" Marine felt like she was doing reruns over and over again as she and Jack pivoted to the right and ran through the dark alleyways. Will and the others were still following right behind them. Once more, another argument ensued.

"Oh and what was that Maria? What did you do to them?"

"I didn't do anything! Unlike you Sparrow, I remember the things I actually do."

"Well apparently you don't. Because we're being chased after by men who are looking for you for some reason!"

"You're an idiot! It was that other Marine's doing obviously. I don't go around town making trouble."

"Is that so? From the way you look, people would think you're actually the embodiment of trouble!"

"Will you two shut up!" Carrie shouted in between them. "You two got us into this situation now get us out of it!" Marine and Jack looked at each other as they ran side by side. Wheels turned inside minds and plans were slowly formed.

"Everyone follow Jones and head for my house. Sparrow, we're going to have to run separately if we want to get away from these men." Marine said. Jack was taking off his hat and his coat as he ran without a reply to the female pirate. He tossed these to Will who almost didn't catch them.

"Put these on and run as fast as you can. Marine, give me your coat and run with the rest. Go and do whatever it is you need to do in your home and meet us at Gibbs'." He ordered. Marine was about to open her mouth to argue that she could handle escaping from the men and that there was no chance that the men were dumb enough to fall for a simple trick as that, when she saw the seriousness in Jack's eyes. Irritatedly, but grudgingly, she removed the coat she had taken from Port Royal and tossed it to the pirate. Jack used the coat to cover himself and ran away from them at the same time Will did.

"Be careful Will!" Elizabeth cried before Will disappeared around the corner. Marine gave a soft, panting sigh and gestured for the others to follow her towards another direction. Slowly, but surely, they could hear the footsteps fading away. When Norrington risked a glance behind him, he saw with relief that there was no one chasing them any longer. Marine hadn't noticed it; her mind concentrated on the fact that she was running around Tortuga in a modern funeral dress and matching high-heeled shoes. She prayed to god that no one was going to notice how strange her clothing was. Another part of her was worried about Jack and Will as they fought to escape the clutches of the men. But the thought wasn't one of the highest in her list of priorities. For now, they had to go to her home where it was safer than outside.

They began moving back to where the rowdy part of town was; taverns and brothels littered the streets they passed by. Marine figured that if she couldn't take the short way to her home, she might as well take the harder, longer way. Will and the others followed the female pirate in silence while looking about them cautiously. After encountering the two group of men, they weren't so calm and so reassured as they had been before leaving the ship. And it was well that they had been cautious. Because a few minutes after they had began to slow down to a walk, a dark shadow lunged at Marine and slammed her against the wall of a building they were passing by. Marine found herself struggling to bring air into her lungs as two rough but thin hands wrapped themselves around her throat in a tight grip. As old and frail as the man looked, he still had surprisingly incredible strength for one his age. Will and Norrington were quickly on the move. They grabbed a hold of each of the man's arms and tried to pry them away.

"Vanessa!" Carrie cried out as she and Elizabeth stood there in shock. Jones took out his dagger and pointed it behind the man's back. The man ignored the sharp object behind him; his eyes were focused on Marine and Marine only.

"Let her go or we'll stab you through the back!" Jones threatened.

"Go ahead and kill me! As long as I bring this she-devil together with me to Davy Jones' Locker I'll have nothing to lose." The man cried. His dark gray eyes were boring holes into Marine as he glared at her with so much hate. Marine could only struggle and wonder what on earth she did to deserve dying in the hands of this man. "Why did you come back here? You have some nerve to go to Tortuga after I told you never to show yourself to me again! Thomas and I were fools to let you walk alive. You should have died together with the woman whose life you mercilessly took."

"What the hell are you talking about?!" Marine managed to gasp. "I don't know any Thomas and I haven't killed any woman in my life!"

"Are you trying to toy with me Clarissa? I haven't lost all of my wits yet! You know what your sins are. Now you must pay for breaking the promise that you made to Thomas in return for your life." He said. As they continued to struggle, the aztec coin tied around Marine's neck became loose and fell to the ground with a soft clink. The man looked down to see what it was and widened his eyes in surprise. He released his hold on Marine and bent down to pick it up while the female pirate fell to the ground and gasped for air. He turned it around in his hands, inspecting the coin from all sides. Marine narrowed her eyes at the man as she rubbed her throat with her hands.

"Give that back!" The man looked down at Marine and furrowed his brows in thought.

"You're...you're not Clarissa." He stated, as if only realizing now that the young woman before her could not possibly be this woman he spoke of.

"I'm not. Give that back to me and I'll consider forgiving you for trying to kill me." She replied hoarsely, wincing at the burning sensation that was throbbing on her throat. Will held her shoulder and arm as she staggered up. Without another word, the man placed the coin in his pocket and began to walk away from them.

"I'll give you back your coin if you can find me. Go to your father's grave and use your name to look for my home. If you are who I think you are then you'll surely find it." He said. Norrington moved to follow him but Marine grabbed his shirt cuffs and pulled him back.

"Let him go. We'll only cause more trouble if we make a scene right here, right now. Don't forget that there are still men out there looking for me." She muttered.

"But what about the coin? Wasn't that a present from your parents?" Carrie asked. Marine closed her eyes and tried to ignore the pain of losing her only last sentimental item from her parents. For now, there were more important things they have to do. Going to her home for safety was the first. Norrington frowned as he watched the strange man walk away and disappear among the shadows but made no move to run after him. Looking at Marine, he pushed her hand away and went on towards the direction where they were heading. Elizabeth went to Marine's other side and looked at her worriedly.

"Are you alright? Can you walk by yourself?" She asked. Marine gently pushed away from Will and managed to stay balanced on her feet. She gave a small smile to Elizabeth and nodded in reply to her question.

"I'll be fine. Let's just go on to my house." She said.

* * *

Jack grumbled angrily to himself as he made his way to Gibb's little shack at the corner of the street with Marine's very worn-out coat slung on his shoulder. He had tried to run away from the men chasing him for one and a half hour. He was partly annoyed that they had not given up and impressed that they had ran together with him through the many obstacles he created for them. A wide grin broke on his face as he recalled going across a pig sty. He had gotten out of that without any stain at all while the men chasing him were less fortunate. It made him wonder what the other Marine had done to catch their attentions like a fish on a hook. And wondering about that made him wonder about the events that had crossed his life ever since that day he saved two women from drowning. His life had been nothing but trouble and danger from the moment he arrived in Port Royal to comandeer a ship. He imagined what his life would have been had he not gone on that day. 

"No sense dwelling on the past." He muttered to himself. Aside from that he consoled himself with the fact that if he had chosen not to go to Port Royal on that day, he would not have his beloved Black Pearl under his command. Another part of him added that he would not have such a loyal crew and somewhat loyal friends in the form of Will Turner, Elizabeth Swann and Sharpshooter Marine if things had not gone the way they were. He blinked and shook his head of any such thoughts.

"Gods I sound like a woman! I must need rum that badly." He said with a slight shiver. He continued to make his way to Gibb's and saw Will coming from another direction. The young blacksmith looked as if all of the energy in his body had been sucked out of him. He made his way to Gibb's house with Jack's coat and hat in his hands hanging to his sides ungracefully. He was covered in dirt and grime from top to bottom but there were no bruises, cuts or blood to Jack's hidden relief. As Jack felt his mood lighten greatly at the sight of Will, he couldn't help but grin at the other man and swagger towards him with a very casual, drunken-like stride.

"Turner! I see you're back as well! So how did you fare with my lovely mates?" He asked. Will looked at him grimly.

"We went to one of the taverns, gambled, sang ridiculous songs, drank rum, and gave each other incredibly priceless gifts." He replied sarcastically. Jack frowned at him.

"Why didn't you tell me you were going to drink rum?! And give me back my coat and hat!" He demanded. Will sighed and shook his head in disbelief as he tossed Jack's things to him and went ahead of the pirate. Jack grabbed his precious articles with great care then wore them on. After he did so, while being reminded of the lack of rum in his system at present, he walked behind Will in a less cheery mood. They arrived at Gibb's small home and found Marine and the others already waiting for them. Elizabeth rushed into Will's arms as the two men walked through the door and gave him a warm hug.

"I'm so glad you're alright!" She said. Will smiled and returned the hug with equal warmth. Marine walked towards Jack with a small relieved smile. She was starting to get worried when neither Jack nor Will appeared for a long time. When the pirate saw her, he immediately stepped back and held up his hands warily.

"You're not going to hug me are you?" He asked. Marine narrowed her eyes at him.

"Don't be so full of yourself Sparrow." She replied as she moved past him to close the door. Jack dropped his hands to his sides and grinned sheepishly at her. Marine, he noticed, looked much better compared to when he last saw her. She was definitely and gratefully cleaner; her black, spiked hair looked shinier than usual. He had not noticed what she had worn underneath the coat but he knew that it was not the one she was wearing now. Her ensemble was similar to the one before, except for the fact that she had purposely ripped the lower half of her vest and cut short the sleeves of her white shirt. The blue bandanna she used to wear around her neck had now been turned into armbands on both her arms. Carrie had changed her appearance too. Instead of her futuristic clothes, she wore a simple sailor's shirt and a pair of brown breeches. He was looking at them both while the others began speaking again.

"So where do we start looking for this man?" Will asked.

"What about the man I was supposed to look for?" Jones asked them. "Shouldn't we find him as well before the other Marine gets the chance to catch him?" Marine walked back towards the group and grabbed her old coat from Jack as she passed by. Then she pressed a finger to her chin and nodded thoughtfully.

"We can split up and ask around for both men at the same time. I don't know the name of the man I'm looking for, but I'm sure a man with a very profound knowledge of the supernatural wouldn't be so hard to find. What's the name of your man Jones?" She asked him.

"It's Cornelius. Cornelius Gashnet." He said.

"Then it's settled. We're going to try and get information on these two men as much as possible. If we get them in person it would be much better. And try avoiding any men you see that seems familiar to you. We wouldn't want to run around Tortuga while being chased by men who want us killed after all." Marine replied. "We can start now and meet back here a few hours later." The others nodded and headed for the door. Marine grabbed Carrie's arm and moved closer to her so that only the two would be able to hear what she was going to say.

"I know you'll plan on going with me so I'm going to say this now. Go with Elizabeth. I have to do something on my own before I look for the man as well and I don't want anyone else knowing about it." She whispered. Before Carrie could open her mouth and argue, Marine had brushed past her and out of the house. She stood there and watched Marine walk away with a sudden strange feeling that something was not entirely right. Carrie's thoughts were cut short when she felt Elizabeth's hand on her shoulder.

"Carrie?" Elizabeth and the others looked at the young woman with worried looks on their faces. Carrie shook her head and smiled at them all.

"It's nothing. I just sort of spaced out back there. Sorry. Let's go now. The quicker we do this, the faster we'll finish." She said. Elizabeth smiled back at her and nodded in agreement as she held Carrie's hand and walked together with her into the streets of Tortuga. Before the group separated, Carrie walked towards Jack and caught his attention.

"Jack. I have a favor to ask of you." She said. The pirate stayed silent, allowing the other woman to go on. "Can you please look for Vanessa and make sure she's alright? I sense something weird going on here and I'm worried about her. You see, before we arrived at her home a while ago, some stranger came and tried to kill her. Then a few minutes later he gave up and took a coin from her. He told her something about going to her father's grave if she wanted to catch him." She explained. For a moment Jack wondered who Vanessa was until he remembered about Marine living in another world under another name. When he remembered, he smiled at Carrie reassuringly as he waved his hand to shoo her away.

"Aye lass, I'll see what I can do about that. Now you go on with Lizzie and the others and enjoy yourself!" He said. "I'm sure your first time in Tortuga will be most satisfying." Carrie looked at Jack for a long moment then nodded slightly to herself and began walking with Elizabeth and Will. Jones moved to a different direction while Norrington went to another. Jack though, had other plans in mind as he made his way through the streets with an enthusiastic, mischievous grin on his face.

* * *

_The sky was dark and gloomy but there were no signs of the rain appearing anytime soon. A large ship floated on the surface of the water close to the island of Tortuga, far enough that people on land would only see a black dot on the horizon. Everyone on board the ship was silenced with grief and depression. Almost everyone had worn something black that day; none of the pirates owned any full ensemble that would resemble the color. They were all crowded at the bow, before a large wooden box that was about to be carried by two of the strongest men in the crew. They all watched as the box was thrown overboard and fell to the cool, wide sea water. The box floated for a few seconds until it slowly sank deeper and deeper in the depths of the water. Everyone had watched the burial at sea; that is, except for two certain people. One was a man who stood at the sideline with a silent, brooding gaze. A thin mop of black hair sat on his head and cold gray eyes stared at the only other person on the ship whose eyes were not focused on the box and the crowd of pirates._

_The young girl stood at the very end of the ship, as far away from the bow as possible. She sat on the ground and leaned her back against the railing, appreciative of the cool gentle sea breeze that brushed her back. She stared at the knife that she held in her hands. It was the last thing she had of her father. And as she looked at its sharp, silver blade, memories of her past crashed onto her one after the other. Most of them were of her father teaching her how to live as a pirate. Some were of her and her father bonding up on the crow's nest or the helm, simply talking about random things. The man watched her but made no move to go to her. He placed his hands inside the pockets of his breeches and looked down at his feet contemplatively._

_She didn't want to watch the coffin of her father sink deep into the waters neither was she going to cry and mourn for his death. She didn't want to accept the fact that her father was no longer going to bond with her or teach her everything he knew of living the life of a pirate but she knew that she had to eventually. It was only going to make everything worse if she didn't. When she first heard of the news, sitting on a chair at the Faithful Bride, she said and did nothing at all. Simply stared at her father's first mate and continued to eat the meal that had been placed on her table. Somehow she had sensed it when he left her on the island two weeks ago. They were at the docks, facing each other for a last, supposedly temporary goodbye. Black Jack bend down and pressed his warm lips on her forehead. Then he gave her a hug so tight that she had a hard time breathing. But she didn't care. At that moment she had felt all of her father's love pouring out for her._

_"Take good care of yourself love. I want you to know that no matter what happens, I will always be there with you in your heart. Promise me you'll always move forward."_

_She promised, but didn't understand the gravity of what she had agreed to until that day his first mate came with the news._

_She will move forward. For her father._

Marine stood on the small rowboat she had borrowed from Jack's ship and looked down at the placid waters. The tide had not come in yet; a very fortunate thing for her. It was dark, but the soft glow of the moonlight that casted down from the heavens and reflected against the surface of the water helped a little. She removed her vest, her shirt and her armbands, letting the bandages that were still tied around her chest be the only thing that covered her. She pulled off the boots on her feet and let them adjust to the sudden change of temperature. She had no idea if what she was doing was right or if it was going to work, but something told her that she had to do it.

She took a deep breath, preparing herself for the trying challenge that faced her, and jumped headfirst into the cold waters with a tiny splash. She lifted her head up into the surface, gave herself a few minutes to get used to the cold water, before diving deeper into the waters. She knew where she was supposed to go. She had marked out the exact spot where they had dropped her father's coffin. But as she swam deeper and deeper, she began to lose the air in her lungs. She closed her eyes, gritted her teeth, then swam upwards as quickly as she could before panic would consume her consciousness.

Once she came back to the surface, she gave a loud and rasp gasp. Air immediately went into her lungs to her relief. She floated there for a while, regaining her breath and her strength, before diving once more. But a few more tries later, she still could barely get halfway to where the solid coral reefs were. She held onto the boat and pounded her fist on it in frustration.

"Damn it! Damn this body! Damn that woman." She cursed. If she had been the old Marine, swimming underwater would have been easier than it was now. She knew her body-both from this world and the other-so well. Vanessa Silvestre might be a good fighter but she was no swimmer. Marine on the other hand, had lived her whole life with water and had much more stamina than Vanessa did. She cursed the other Marine, knowing that it was her body and her physical strength that she needed now. In fact, in this world of fighting, danger and adventure, it was the female pirate's body that was going to keep her alive.

She tried to dive a few more times but always she failed to reach the bottom. She didn't know how long she had been going at it but knew that it was long enough to become unhealthy. Her lips were turning a pale bluish-purple and her body was shaking with the cold that kept seeping though her skin. The last time she dived and came back up again, she noticed that there was another boat floating near hers. There was no one on it so she paid it no mind. She turned around to her own boat and found herself staring up at someone sitting with both his boots propped up on the edge.

"Strange, I thought looking for Cornelius Gashnet and this other man are important?" Jack told her with a sly grin. Marine hovered there for a few seconds in shock before recovering herself and moving closer towards the boat.

"What are you doing here?" She asked him.

"I was busy looking for the two men at the Faithful Bride with a mug of rum or two in my hand from time to time, when I recalled Carrie telling me something about you meeting someone who tried to kill you, took away your precious coin from you then told you to go to your father's grave if you wanted to catch him. I, being a man with a great sense of the female intuition, decided to look for you and see what the matter was all about."

"But you had no idea where to look for me."

"That's where you're wrong my dear Maria." He said, raising a finger in a lecturing tone. "I knew your father was a man of the sea. Their graves are usually here, right where they belong. And what a coincidence it was, that when I came aboard the Black Pearl a few minutes earlier, one of my rowboats was discovered missing." Marine looked down in embarrassment. She had not told anyone about her whereabouts; did not want to tell anyone where she was going. Jack looked at her for a full minute then sighed and grabbed her arm.

"Come on into the boat before you get something from being under the water too long. That's an order from your captain." He said. Marine narrowed her eyes at Jack but obliged and hoisted herself up into the boat. She wore her clothes back then was surprised when Jack handed her his coat as well. She smiled at him as she wrapped his coat around her, taking in the smell of his familiar scent gladly. At first neither one said a word and sat there in an awkward silence. Then the pirate scratched the back of his head and looked at the water where Marine had been diving into for a while.

"So do you need help in getting the thing that's under there?" He asked. Marine clutched the coat tight in her hands and pressed her lips together. She wanted to say yes but would feel embarrassed and ashamed of herself if she did. Jack sensed that she was going to say no and sighed while leaning against the other side of the boat.

"You know love, being the supposedly practical, insensitive thinker that you make yourself out to be, asking for help from others when there's no other choice should make perfect sense." Marine flinched, knowing the truth in his words. She looked down at her shivering hands and sighed in resignment.

"Fine. I do need your help." Jack sat up straighter, his gaze now focused on her. Marine turned slightly red at the intense stare of the pirate then looked away as she spoke.

"My father's grave is right below us. Once you get there you'll have to find something that's out of place. I have no idea what it is but if what that man said was right, then you'll find it." She explained. Jack stood up as he removed his shirt, his sash, his effects, his boots and placed his hat on her head.

"Take good care of me hat now Maria. I'll be right back." He said with a wink before diving into the water. Marine sat there and looked over the boat both anxiously and eagerly, waiting for any sign of Jack to appear. Her hands gripped the edge of the boat tightly and she began to feel her whole body shaking with excitement. Once she catches this man, she might get to learn more about her father and what his life was before she had been born. Her father never did mention anything about his past life. Whenever she asked him about it, he would keep his lips tightly shut.

Her thoughts were cut short as she heard the sound of someone gasping for air from behind her. She turned around and saw Jack clutching at the boat tightly. His breath was hoarse and ragged as he sucked in as much air as he could; his chest rising and falling exaggeratedly. In his hand was a small, wooden chest. Marine helped Jack up into the boat and took the box from him while the pirate recovered from his trip. Before doing anything to the chest, she turned to face Jack and hugged him with joy.

"Thank you so much Jack. You have no idea how much it means to me that you're helping me out with this." The pirate stiffened but didn't say anything since he was still short of breath. Marine released her hold on him and looked at the chest in her hand curiously. It was heavier than she expected. She felt something very heavy hidden inside its walls. She tried to open it but found it locked. She frowned but wasn't thrown off by that fact. Once Jack had regained his breath long enough to get a few words out of his mouth and put on his clothes and his effects, he moved behind Marine and peered over her shoulder.

"So? What's inside?"

"I don't know. It's locked. Maybe we can get Will to open it for us." She told him. Jack took out something from his sash as he held out his hand to her.

"Give me that. If you let the whelp handle this he'll just smash the little bugger into pieces. I'll take care of it." He said. Marine raised an eyebrow but didn't feel like arguing with Jack and handed the chest to him. She watched the pirate take out a small lock pick from his red sash and began to play with the lock on the wooden chest. A smile came to her face as she thought of something.

"Did you decide to keep a lock pick with you because you had been locked up in dungeon cells multiple of times during our last adventure together?" She asked with amusement. Jack stopped picking to look up at her for a few seconds before resuming his work.

"Possibly."

"Well I never expected you to learn from something like that easily." Marine mused humorously. "Usually it takes you a long time before you have some kind of revelation." Jack pursed his lips in disapproval but never stopped picking the lock.

"Never assume something based on what you see love."

"I'll keep that in mind." Marine said, still looking at Jack in a funny way. She felt her whole self become light and at ease; as she always does whenever she was with Jack Sparrow. She liked the presence of Jack in her company and like the feeling of being light at heart.

A soft click reached both pirates' ears as Jack made one last twist with the pick. He grinned in triumph as he opened the chest and looked inside. Marine quickly moved to Jack's side and peered together with him. Both stared at each other in confusion as they saw the chest's contents.

"...What do you make of it?" Jack asked her, taking out a piece of rock that was shaped like a star and looking at it from all sides. Marine took out the only other item that was inside the chest and looked at it. It was a map, filled with small drawings of houses and buildings. After a longer look, she realized that she was looking at a very detailed map of Tortuga. Jack looked at it and was familiar with it as well.

"I think this map and my name will take us to the home of the man who took my coin. This rock must probably be a key or a clue to it as well." She said. "We should take it back with us ashore and discuss about it with the others. That way, we can solve this strange puzzle quicker." She added. Jack rubbed his chin for a few seconds before nodding in agreement.

"Aye, that seems to be the most rational plan. Then I shall go to the other boat and together we'll place these two boats back where they rightfully belong. After that we can head for Gibb's and see to this strange map." He said, looking at the chest and its contents with a curious glance. He looked up at Marine and saw her sitting there, under the moonlight, with his hat and his coat wrapped around her. It seemed to him that at that moment, she had become and entirely different entity; most likely that of a beautiful dark goddess whose tanned skin glowed milky white. The fact that his coat and hat were on her gave him a strange sense of arousal. He fought the urge to jump at her and ravish her right there and simply grinned at her as he admired the image before him.

"You know love, you look good wearing my hat and my coat. Maybe I should let you wear it more often." He teased. Marine blushed, hoping that it would be too dark for Jack to see, as she turned away from him and returned the items they took out into the chest. She placed the chest right beside her and tossed his hat and coat back at him before grabbing the oars on the sides of the boat.

"Forget it. You're not going to get me into your bed like that Sparrow. I'm no lovesick fool you can use your charm on." Jack caught the two articles of clothing in one hand, all the while grinning at Marine.

"Are you implying that I can't get you into my bed with that method but I can still get you in bed through some other means?" He asked, wiggling both his eyebrows perversely. Marine gripped the oars in her hand tightly and looked over her shoulder with a scorching gaze.

"If you're not out of this boat by the count of three I will smack you senseless with this oar and throw you into the waters. One...two..." She never finished her counting because as soon as she started Jack practically lunged to the other boat as if he was being chased by the tribe of cannibals during the second movie. A smug smile grew on her lips as she watched Jack grumble and fumble with the oars on his boat. Then she began to row the boat, and was followed after by Jack to the Black Pearl.


	12. What's in a Name?

**AN: **Whooo! I'm on a roll here! Enjoy the fic.

* * *

**_ "You already have a name. Why do you want to make another?" - Black Jack, Marine's father_**

**Chapter 12 - What's in a Name?**

When Jack and Marine arrived back in Gibb's home, Will and the others were still nowhere in sight. Marine wanted to go back out and look for them, worried that something had happened to them. Jack on the other hand assured her that there was nothing wrong and that they will all come back sooner or later.

"Let's just put our focus on the contents of this chest and solve this strange puzzle that the man you spoke of placed in your father's grave." He told her. "That way once they come back, we won't waste any more time in trying to solve said puzzle that came from the chest at your father's grave." Marine looked at Jack for a short while before reluctantly agreeing and spreading out the very detailed map of Tortuga on a table. The two pirates sat down at opposite sides and looked at the map for a long while without doing anything at all. Marine was partially hopeful that the answers to all their problems would suddenly just come to them as they looked.

"What did the man tell you before he left?" Jack asked, breaking the silence that had come upon them. Marine looked up at him then back at the map as she spoke.

"Go to your father's grave and use your name to look for my home. How can I use my name if I don't even know where to find his home?" She muttered softly. The silence came over them again. It wasn't awkward but it wasn't a comfortable silence either. Jack and Marine would stare at the map, then at each other, then around the room or outside through the dirty windows, then back at the map again. Jack began to whistle and tap his finger on the table in a random beat. After a while he began humming the tune to 'A Pirate's Life for Me' which slowly evolved into soft singing. Marine tolerated all this until Jack began tapping his foot to the rhythm. She gave him a warning glare, which Jack replied with an innocent grin. The pirate's grin fell though as he looked at the map once more.

"I suppose you need to tell someone your name. Perhaps they'll point to a spot on that map." Jack suggested. Marine sighed as she slumped on the chair she sat on.

"If that was the case then it would take months to find the right man or woman! We can't afford that much time and I don't think this man can either." Marine let her head fall on top of the map and gave a frustrated sigh while she gritted her teeth. "We're not going to get anywhere with this are we?" Jack gave her a disapproving frown and wagged his finger at her.

"You give up too easily love. Only cowards and idiots give up when they barely started."

"Oh yeah? Well I don't see you giving me good ideas. All I see is you sitting there, staring at me like I'm some sort of a very large bottle of rum!"

"Speaking of rum, I wonder if Gibbs has any in the kitchen..." As Jack mused on this he stood up and walked away from the table. Marine stared at him with her mouth gaping open. She closed it when she realized what she was doing and narrowed her eyes at Jack in irritation. At that moment, she caught the sound of the door opening and saw Will, Elizabeth and Carrie enter the sitting room. Marine gave a smile of relief as she stood up and gave Carrie a hug.

"Guys! Thank god you're here. I don't have to deal with him by myself any longer!" She cried. Carrie blinked a few times before her words sunk in. She giggled and patted Marine's head like that of a small child's. Elizabeth wasn't as used to seeing Marine act so child-like and watched with a curious expression on her face.

"How long have you and Jack been here?" She asked. Marine looked at Elizabeth and placed a hand to her forehead, pretending to feint.

"We've been here for 5 minutes now! That man is capable of driving a woman crazy even for just a minute." She wailed. Elizabeth and Carrie couldn't help but laugh at the way Marine had exaggerated her situation. Jack came out from the kitchen with a bottle of rum to see what the noise was all about and grinned when he saw the newcomers.

"Ah I see you've all come back safe and sound! So how was your lovely tour around Tortuga?" He asked Carrie. The young blond haired woman grinned at Jack.

"It was pretty fun! But we couldn't find any clues to where the two men are." She added, looking at Marine apologetically. "Everyone knew who the superstitious guy was but no one knew his name or where he was. And no one knew who Cornelius Gashnet was either so we decided to come back here." Marine frowned in disappointment but said nothing about it. Jack had ignored the rest of what Carrie said after she mentioned the first sentence.

"I knew it! I told Maria not to worry, but no; she wouldn't listen to an honest pirate like myself." He said. Carrie raised an eyebrow at the pirate.

"Pirates are never honest."

"Well how can you tell whether a pirate is honest or dishonest if he's honest enough to be dishonest about being honest?" Everyone stared at him for a long while, trying to comprehend what he had just said. Carrie was the first person to give up trying to think and looked at the chest on the table curiously.

"Hey what's that over there?" She asked. Marine moved towards the table and handed her the map as she told them a very quick version of what had happened earlier. Carrie, Will and Elizabeth were looking at it when Norrington and Jones came into the room. Jack had sat back down on the table and was enjoying his bottle of rum all to himself. Jones decided to get some for himself and walked to the direction Jack pointed to when the thief asked. Norrington went towards Will and the others and was looking at the map as well.

"You know what this reminds me of?" Carrie asked Marine as she looked up from the parchment. "Connect-the-dots. You can make images if you connect these houses." She explained. Marine stared at the map again and saw that indeed, all the tiny pictures of the buildings, houses and the like looked like dots that can connect to each other to form an image. That was when an idea occurred to her. She grinned and snatched the map away from Carrie's hands.

"That's it! Carrie you're a genius!" She cried excitedly. The young woman looked at her incredulously and with a hint of amusement as they all watched Marine rummage around the house for something. She was mumbling words to herself as she opened cabinets and drawers and shut them close when she couldn't see what she was looking for. "Where's a friggin pencil when you need one?" She muttered in annoyance as she closed yet another cabinet. Everyone except for Carrie had no idea what Marine was talking about and simply looked at her in confusion.

"She's looking for a quill." Carrie explained. Understanding dawned on everyone as finally Marine raised a quill and a decently half-filled bottle of ink that she managed to find within a very dusty wardrobe.

"Aha! Finally." She went back to the table with the writing materials and the map. Then she began to scribble something on the paper. Everyone moved close to the table to try and see what Marine was writing. Jack moved close to Marine's side and read aloud what the female pirate had written.

"Maria?" He widened his eyes and grinned at Marine. "Marvelous! I knew you could do it! I never had a doubt in my mind that you would solve the mystery!"

"Don't go praising me yet." Marine said with a grin as she held out her map to admire it. The word Maria was written on the paper in script, with the last stroke of the letter a ending at a certain spot on the map. When Jones and Norrington looked at it, they gave everyone confused looks.

"Will someone please explain to me what is going on here?" Norrington asked. Marine was too busy looking at the map and trying to figure out where the spot was so Elizabeth tried her best to explain to the two remaining men what had happened. Norrington was not pleased to hear that she and Jack spent the hour searching for the chest when they should have been looking for the two persons the way they were. He was about to open his mouth and reprimand them when Marine pushed past everyone and walked out into the streets of Tortuga. Everyone had no choice but to follow the female pirate with nothing else to do.

The night was still young as men in taverns fought, shouted and laughed with drinks in their hands. Jack looked at all this with a yearning look but made no move to stop following Marine. The female pirate had her nose so close to the parchment that she almost crashed onto a pile of hay and almost knocked herself against numerous walls. Norrington was starting to get pissed off as they continued walking around town with no sign of stopping or knowing where they were supposed to go.

"I am tired of all this senseless walking around Miss Sharpshooter Marine. If we are to resume looking for the two persons tomorrow, then we must all get a good night's rest. And I expect you and Mr. Sparrow to look as well because I am not going to work hard all day for the likes of you two." He said agitatedly. Jack narrowed his eyes at Norrington and opened his mouth since it seemed that Marine was not going to.

"Commodore, I must plead you to shut up and listen to your current captain or I shall leave you here and tell every bloody pirate ashore who you are." He said. Norrington glared back at the pirate and was about to make a retort when Marine stopped walking and looked in front of her.

"This is it." Everyone looked at the direction she faced and saw a little, old, rundown shack. It was far from the rowdy streets and seemed to emit a calming aura around. Marine could feel her insides jump around in anxiety. She raised her hand towards the door and knocked three times with slow but steady beats. No one answered the door so Marine was about to knock again when an unfamiliar voice spoke from behind all of them.

"What on earth are you lot doing there?" Heads sharply turned around to see who had spoken and weapons were raised in fear of falling into a surprise attack from thugs or pirates. A figure came out of the shadows, revealing an old woman who wore a cloak around her shoulders and held a basket with a small and thin cloth placed on top of it. They stared at her without putting down their guards and that didn't seem to scare the old woman away from them. Marine looked at the old woman's wrinkled face and wondered if she knew something about the man she had met. She gestured to the house as she spoke.

"Is there anyone living over there?" She asked. The old woman peered through the darkness at the house Marine pointed out and widened her eyes in surprise.

"Dear goodness me! No one has lived there last I heard! I should know because that's my property and I use that house for storage." She explained. Everyone stared at the old woman then at the small house. Marine looked crestfallen as she stared longer. The house that she had hoped would be the one she was looking for suddenly began to seem deserted to her. The windows were shattered and almost falling off its hinges. The walls and the door had tiny cracks on it; some of those had probably come from bullets or knives. The house suddenly seemed smaller and impossible for someone to live in as she continued staring. Her head hung low as she muttered a thank you and an apology to the woman and began to walk back to Gibb's house. Everyone but Norrington looked at each other before following the female pirate back, not knowing what to say to comfort the disappointed woman. It was Jack who made the first attempt.

"Cheer up Maria. I'm sure there's some other logical explanation why this idea didn't work. Maybe you wrote your name on the map wrong or maybe you have to write your name backwards. There are a lot of other reasons for you not to give up." He said, looking at the others and giving them pleading looks. Carrie walked right beside Marine and placed an arm around her shoulders in a friendly, comforting manner. She could feel her best friend's body stiffen at the touch but didn't care. They had been close enough to know how the other would act and this was one of those moments when they totally understood each other. Carrie knew this was so when Marine didn't remove the hand on her shoulder.

"We can still look for this man. And it's not like it's going to be the end of the world if we didn't." She told her. Marine stayed silent, but they could feel her relax a tiny bit to their relief. They all walked back to Gibbs' house, each in their own little thoughts. Only when they reached the front door and only when they had entered the empty, messy house did the silence break.

"Go to sleep, all of you. I really am sorry about all this mess. I promise to look for the superstitious man and for Cornelius Gashnet first thing tomorrow morning." She muttered. "Goodnight to all of you." She didn't wait for a reply as she moved deeper into the house and collapsed ungracefully onto a dirty couch without a care. Carrie frowned and looked around her.

"How are we all supposed to fit in this tiny house?" She asked.

"Gibbs has a bed upstairs and has a hammock outside by the pig's sty..." As Jack mentioned the place where he and Will had seen Gibbs previously, both men wrinkled their noses in disgust. "Elizabeth and Carrie shall have to take the bed upstairs while the rest would have the choice to sleep here or find an inn." He explained. Jones immediately chose the option of looking for an inn outside. When no one else said anything, Jack grinned.

"Well, good luck to us in finding a place to sleep then."

* * *

She could suddenly remember a memory from her past; of the dreams in the days before she knew that Sharpshooter Marine existed and before she had come to Jack Sparrow's world and was simply Vanessa Silvestre. She and her father were standing behind the rails of the large ship and watched the dolphins jump alongside them playfully. Marine was looking at them with bright, cheerful eyes; admiring the sea creatures grace and strength. She looked up at her father eagerly. 

_"I want to have my own pirate name!"_ She declared out of the blue. Her father looked down at her with confusion on his face.

_"You already have a name. Why do you want to make another?"_ He asked. Marine pouted at him and pointed an accusing finger.

_"You're real name is Thomas but you're called Black Jack. So I want to have my own amazing pirate name that would bring fear to people who hear it."_ She said. Her father chuckled as a smile broke in his face. He went down on one knee so he could look at his daughter and ruffled the black hair on top of her head.

_"Well then I guess it wouldn't hurt if you did. What did you have in mind?"_

_"Marine! I want to be called Marine!"_ She cried excitedly. Her father furrowed his brows in thought before smiling at his daughter impressively.

_"Using the first two initials of your name? That's interesting. I think I like it."_ He said. Marine's eyes widened and brightened up at her father's comment.

_"You mean it?"_

_"Every word. Marine is a good name for a pirate like yourself. When you grow up, I'm sure it would strike fear in those who hear and speak of it."_ He said. Marine grinned and felt herself swell up in pride. She loved the nickname because she had thought of it herself while she was off doing small work in the ship one day. She had no idea how true the popularity and fame of her name would become.

Marine opened her eyes and felt her whole body throbbing with aches. She couldn't understand why until she felt the soft thing she was lying on and remembered that she had slept on the couch. She moaned and groaned as she sat up and stretched out her limbs as much as she could, hearing her bones crack while she did. When the throbbing pain had eased a little she looked around the small house. Jack, Will and Norrington were all sprawled on the ground together in uncomfortable positions to her amusement while Jones, Elizabeth and Carrie where nowhere to be found. She guessed that the two ladies were up in the small bedroom Gibbs had while the remaining man went out to an inn.

A yawn escaped her mouth while she stood up from the couch and moved towards the table where the quill lay. She picked it up and took out the parchment she had kept with her throughout the night. She looked at the black ink where her name 'Maria' had already been written over. She wasn't too worried about not being able to read the map after what she planned to do. She sat on the chair before the table and was about to write when she heard soft murmurs from behind. She turned around in her chair to find Will Turner slowly waking up from his deep sleep. He widened his eyes when he found his legs and arms tangled with the other's and tried his best to get out of the mess without making too much noise. Once he was free he saw Marine looking at him and walked towards her while stretching out his muscles.

"Good morning Marine. What are you doing now?" He asked. Marine smiled at him.

"Good morning Will. I'm writing my name on the parchment." She explained. Will looked at her in confusion.

"But isn't Maria already written on the parchment? Do you think you wrote it in the wrong way?" She shook her head as she looked back at the parchment.

"No I didn't write it wrong. I'm sure this is how the paper should be positioned. It's the name that's wrong. Maria is indeed my first name but it's not the name that I used when I was younger." She explained as she placed the tip of the quill on top of the parchment and began to move her hand slowly and precisely. "The name I'm using right now, Marine, is a combination of my whole name. I took out the first two letters in each one and combined them together to form this word. First is Maria, as you all know. The last, my family name, is Nelee. The second one..." She placed the quill to the side when she was done and looked at the map. Will was looking at it as well and furrowed his brows in confusion.

"Do you think that's right? If this is the real way to his house then it means..."

"This is it." Marine said with confidence. "I would swear my life on it." Sounds of life stirring from all over the house began to reach both of their ears. Will and Marine looked to find Jack and Norrington slowly waking up as well. There was the sound of footsteps coming down from above them at the same time that the door to Gibb's house opened and revealed Jones as he walked inside. Jack was the first to come out of his sleepy stupor and muttered a curse as he pushed Norrington aside. The Commodore fell back to the ground with a soft thump and uttered a loud groan as he rubbed his head. Marine looked at Will in curiosity.

"Did the three of you really sleep there together like that?" She asked with an amused smile on her face. Will narrowed his eyes at her then at Jack and Norrington who were still recovering from the tangle they got themselves into.

"We were sleeping side by side at a respectable distance last I remembered. I didn't know we had gotten tangled up until I woke up and saw it myself." He said, wrinkling his nose as he thought of how their bodies had been so close when he had woken up. Elizabeth and Carrie walked up to them and looked at the parchment in Marine's hand.

"What's up?" Carrie asked. "Did you find something new about that?" Marine grinned and nodded as she handed it to them.

"I did. And this time I'm sure that this is the real directions to our man's home. And for your information Norrington, I did not slave all night thinking of this." She added, looking at Norrington spitefully. Norrington made no move to retort to what she said as he stood up from the floor. Jack walked towards the group and snatched the parchment away from Carrie's hand. He pulled it as far away from them as possible while taking a look at it. A grin grew on his face as he looked at Marine mischievously.

"So this is your real name is it Maria? You sure have a lot of secrets up your sleeve. Care to divulge more with me perhaps...in bed?" He asked. Marine narrowed her eyes at Jack as she snatched back the parchment from him.

"Shut it Sparrow. So what would you like to do? Go to the place indicated on this map here or look for Cornelius and the other superstitious man?" She asked them, waving the paper around. Carrie and Jack both shrugged in reply while the rest looked at each other for a while.

"We might as well do something that would lead us somewhere." Jones said. "Since we have something to go on with this one, I think we should take a look at this and meet the man behind these plans rather than go around town and asking for the whereabouts of the other two. We might even get his help if we do find him." Norrington rolled his eyes at everyone in the room.

"Do whatever you wish. I could care less about what you plan to do here while the pirates from before make their way towards us." He said. Marine felt a bitter comeback rising from her throat but forced herself to keep it down. She looked at everyone who agreed to go to the place on the map and nodded.

"Alright. Let's head there first then." She turned around swiftly and began walking out of the door with the parchment in hand. Everyone else followed her once more and moved under the bright sunlight of day. They moved the same way they did the night before; with Marine peering at the map intently and almost bumping into walls and other things while the rest looked around warily for men who wanted to kill them. They were so busy looking at everything else that they failed to see where exactly they were going. And so once Marine had stopped walking and looked up from the map, she sensed everyone but Will, who had already seen the map and expected it, stare at her incredulously.

"...this is it?" Elizabeth asked.

"The last place we went to seems a lot more probable than this...this...have you become that desperate Sharpshooter Marine, that you would simply mark out anything on the map without seeing the sense of it?" Norrington asked her in irritation. Marine turned back to face them and instead of looking upset or disappointed, looked even more sure of herself.

"Say whatever you wish Norrington but I'm sure that the man's house is over there." She pointed at the large lake that was before them; somewhere in the center of it. Under the blazing sun, the surface of the water glittered brightly like shiny gold coins. "The house we are looking for is underwater." Will and the others looked doubtful of what they were hearing as they looked at the water. She turned to Jack with a calm, unreadable expression on her face. She was not going to plead or ask for his trust by looking hopeless or dependent of him. She wanted him to trust her just because she was who she was. Jack rubbed his chin and played with his braided beard decorated with beads of all kinds of color. Then he grinned and waved a hand casually.

"Well since Maria seems so sure of herself, I say we let her do what she thinks should be done." Marine smiled gratefully at Jack then moved up as close to him as she possibly could without making physical contact. Jack was caught off guard by her action and clumsily leaned backwards as he raised a suspicious eyebrow at her. The side of Marine's lips curled further upward and turned into a mischievous grin while Jack narrowed his eyes in return.

"What's with that look love?" He muttered. Marine brought her fingers up to play with his messy, tangled up hair and continued giving him that same, eerie smile.

"Well Captain, I'm really grateful that you believe in me. In fact, so grateful that I'll let you do the honors of being the first to go into the man's home." She drawled. Jack blinked at her in surprise before giving her a similar grin of mischief.

"And what makes you so sure that I'll gladly take this honor?"

"I have my ways." She replied and moved even closer to Jack if it was possible. Jack could sense his whole body shiver with delight as he felt her hand slide slowly down. Even without her fingers actually touching him he could sense his body ache badly to feel her skin. He wondered for a brief moment what it would be like to have Marine in bed and immediately shook it off. He wasn't going to let her get the best of him with something as commonly tricky as that. He immediately grabbed her hand with his own and stared at her with dark eyes.

"This isn't usually like you Marine." He addressed her in a serious manner, letting Marine know that he was not fooling around with her. But she wasn't done fooling around just yet. "You're playing on very dangerous waters now. Waters which you are obviously, undoubtedly, unexperienced in." He whispered in a warning tone. Marine still had that smile on her face as she lifted her other hand and placed something cold to Jack's forehead.

"Of course this isn't usually like me. But that's not my real intent now is it? I never intended to flirt with you or use my sex to get to you. On the contrary..." The sound of something being cocked was loud in the awkward silence the whole group had fallen into. "It's the very opposite of it. And I have just as much experience in this part of the water as you do Sparrow." Jack dropped his free hand to his side and felt for his pistol that was suddenly missing. He glanced sideways to find it pointed at him. He narrowed his eyes at Marine and let his lips curl to an irritated frown.

"You dirty, tricky wench."

"Pirate." Marine replied with a humorous grin. "Oh and before I forget." She passed onto his hand the star-shaped rock they had found together with the chest the night before. "I think this would be of much help to you when you dive and look for whatever it is we're supposed to look for. Enjoy!"

* * *

"Women are deceitful, confusing and infuriating little creatures!" Jack muttered darkly to himself as he floated at the surface of the water with only his pants on him. He had swam quite a distance already and could only see an unclear form of Marine and the others waiting for him ashore. He especially felt angry at the female pirate who was probably laughing as she fiddled with his hat, his shirt and his effects. He began to paddle faster and further to the center, where Marine claimed was the spot where the man's home would be. 

"After giving her my full support on the topic. After allowing her to do all these things even though they seem senseless and a waste of time. She simply got back at me and used me. Used my knowing weakness for the irresistible damsels in distress. Why couldn't she have asked the others to go over here and swim? Why do I have to do the swimming when in fact everyone who's on the bloody shore right now could swim." He continued muttering to himself. He could hear his own sense of reason, in the annoying form of Marine's voice, speak back to him.

_"You of all people know that I can't dive as deep as I would have for some strange, unknown reason. And obviously among everyone here, you're the one with the most experience at sea and water. Therefore you are the best candidate for this sort of job."_ And he'd imagine her giving him a look so innocent that it actually shows off the exact opposite. He grumbled on and continued to swim. He might as well do it, and do it fast so he can come back and take his things away from Marine's prying hands.

Jack took a deep breath before diving into the murky water lit up by the sunlight coming in small, thin streams. He couldn't see the coral reef below him and sensed that the lake was deeper than they had all suspected it to be. For a split second Jack was glad none of the others were diving into the water and attempting to get to the deepest part of the lake. They would certainly have not lasted that long under the water. He used his hands and legs to paddle deeper into the depths and strained his eyes for any sign of a house, a cave or anything that would give away any signs of human inhabitation. At last he saw a large dark dome at the very floor of the lake surrounded by seaweeds and small school of fishes hiding from large predators. He swam closer to it and felt the rough surface with his hands. It wasn't as solid as it looked; there was a sense of it being hollow as he felt it and knocked on it. He began to move around it and tried his best to look for any star-shaped hole or anything that would have a connection to the rock. He managed to find one; a small hole on the coral reef right beside the large dome. He pressed the star-shaped rock into it and waited for something to happen.

There was a slight quake, one that Jack wouldn't feel since he was underwater, followed by the large dome seemingly shedding its outer skin. He couldn't hide his surprise as the large dark dome suddenly became transparent and revealed a bubble-shaped dome with a house inside it. He would never have believed such a thing existed if he hadn't seen it with his own eyes. He felt air becoming sparse in his lungs and began to swim back upwards as fast as he could. His whole body was starting to become tense as he held in his breath and saw black spots in front of his view of the surface of the water dancing before his eyes. He placed hands to his throat in an effort to keep himself from sucking in air that was not there as his legs continued to kick upwards. He was so close to the surface of the water but he knew that he had reached his limit. His legs couldn't push forward anymore and he was beginning to lose consciousness from lack of air. Finally he closed his eyes and allowed himself to give up his holding of breath.

Marine and the others had felt the short and weak tremble of the ground and looked at each other in confusion. Together their heads turned towards the water, where Jack was still nowhere to be seen.

"Do you think that's..."

"Well of course it's Sparrow. He's the only one who's doing something." Norrington muttered. "What sort of trouble is that pirate putting us into this time." None of the others made a remark about what the Commodore said and waited eagerly for Jack to come up and tell them what the cause of the tremble of the earth was. They waited for quite some time and began to grow worried when Jack still didn't come out of the water.

"What's taking him so long? Shouldn't he be coming up right about now?" Carrie asked as she poked the surface of the water with her finger.

"He couldn't hold his breath for that long." Will muttered in agreement. "Even if he has passed unscathed through so many obstacles in the past, it's just impossible." The possibilities of what had happened to Jack ran through all their minds one by one. Marine was about to decide to jump into the water and see what was going on when they saw a limp form floating not far from them. They could see the red bandanna on the head with the braided part of a hair at the side. Marine widened her eyes in surprise.

"That's Jack!" Will immediately jumped into the water and swam towards Jack as quickly as he could. Everyone else stood as close to the water as they could get without getting wet and watched as Will came close to Jack. He held the pirate's shoulders and was about to pull him ashore when two strong hands suddenly gripped his own shoulder and pulled him close. Will widened his eyes and stared into the equally surprised eyes of Jack. By the look on the pirate's face Marine could guess what he had been trying to do and failed to suppress her laughter. Carrie was laughing along with her and nudged Elizabeth teasingly.

"Look out Elizabeth. You just got yourself a competition for Will's heart." Elizabeth wrinkled her nose and gave the two a half-disgusted, half-amused look while she shook her head in disbelief. Jack, upon seeing that he was not holding the person he expected, quickly withdrew his hands from Will the way a person would withdraw his hands from a burning pot. He frowned distastefully and accusingly at the blacksmith, blaming him for his humiliation, before swimming close to shore. When he got there he saw Marine and Carrie laughing at him and narrowed his eyes at the two of them.

"What's the matter Jack? I'm sure Will would love to return the feelings if he wasn't betrothed to Elizabeth." Marine teased. "Though I never did realize that you were into eunuchs yourself." That made the two women start laughing all over again. Jack looked over his shoulder at Will who was swimming towards them.

"Well then thank the gods he is betrothed to Lizzie. That would give me the chance to roam more freely with other women who would be more than happy to have me." He said, giving Marine a knowing wink. Marine stopped laughing and rolled her eyes at him while Carrie looked from her to Jack and raised her eyebrows high with suspicion.

"So what did you find down there Sparrow?" Norrington asked him. Jack looked at Norrington, glad of the change of subject, and smiled at them all mischievously.

"If you want to find out I suggest you come and see for yourself. It's safe so there's nothing to worry about." He told them. Everyone ashore looked at each other with slight reluctance before walking towards the water and slowly moving deeper and deeper. Elizabeth had the hardest time because of the dress she was wearing. But with the help of Marine and Carrie, they managed to pull the dress under the water without it floating back up to the surface. Jack motioned for them all to follow him and dived first into the water. Everyone had no choice but to take deep breaths and follow Jack into the water.

At first Marine could not believe what she was seeing. But as they swam closer towards the large thing on the coral reef of the lake, she found that she wasn't dreaming of it. It was a typical-looking house inside an air bubble. It made her remember the cartoon she watched on TV back in their own world whenever she was to take care of her younger cousins. It was about the yellow sponge who had lots of stupid adventures together with his even dumber starfish friend. She remembered the squirrel character who built a bubble dome so she could live in a treehouse underwater. They swam towards that large object that stood out from the rest of the things swimming underwater.

Carrie was the first one to lose breath as they continued deeper and deeper into the water. She clutched Marine's hand tightly and placed her other hand to her throat. She closed her eyes and struggled to keep her breath in. Marine wrapped an arm around her and began to swim as fast as she could, pushing herself with her legs fiercely. She cursed in her mind and prayed to god that they would all get out of this mess alive as she felt her own supply of oxygen quickly depleting. A few minutes after Carrie had let Marine know she was losing oxygen, they heard a voice shout 'Elizabeth!'. Heads turned around to see Will with his hands covering his mouth. Elizabeth was swimming beside him and was looking pale with lack of oxygen.

It took Marine a few seconds to realize that Will had shouted under water with a voice as clear as glass. She swiveled her head towards Jack, who looked at them all with an amused and calm face. Their conversations from before came back to her as the gears in her mind rotated.

_"He couldn't hold his breath for that long. Even if he has passed unscathed through so many obstacles in the past, it's just impossible."_ The limp body of Jack as it floated on the surface. The sudden jerking of his body as Will held his shoulders. Then Will speaking normally even when they were under the water. Marine suddenly realized the double meaning behind Jack's words and relaxed her arms as she let Carrie go. She closed her eyes and took a deep, refreshing breath of air.

"Breathe Carrie. Breathe or you'll never find out what happens after we meet this person later." She said. It still took Carrie a few seconds before what Marine said made sense to the other woman. She slowly dropped her hand from her throat and gasped gratefully. Will and the others were slowly beginning to realize the same thing and began to breathe as well. Norrington turned his attention to Jack who was floating there with a grin on his face and narrowed his eyes at him.

"Why didn't you tell us that we could breathe under water?" He asked while still panting slightly. Jack shrugged and grinned in an innocent, charming manner. Then he gave Norrington the easiest, simplest answer to his question.

'Well you didn't ask." Norrington could feel his veins throb with irritation and his hands itched to get a hold of Jack's throat and strangle him to death. Marine sighed and shook her head from side to side while Carrie began uttering angry curses at Jack. The pirate was taken aback by the sudden language but recovered quick enough and grinned at Carrie with amusement.

"Is that the language they teach you at school nowanddays? How upsetting..." He said with mock regret. "Though I find your vocabulary very limited. If you want I can teach you a lot more wonderful words to say." He added. Carrie narrowed her eyes at Jack and was about to open her mouth and retort back when a dark figure suddenly appeared behind Jack. Instead of words a short scream of surprise came out of Carrie's throat. Before the thought formed in Marine's head, her hand grabbed a dagger from within her clothes and pulled it out. She was about to throw it behind Jack when she remembered that she wasn't as accurate in her aim as she used to be and faltered. Jack turned around and was about to get his pistol out from his belt when the stranger grabbed Jack's wrist. Dark gray eyes roved over Jack and the rest of the people in the group.

"You took your lovely time getting here. I was beginning to think that you weren't her." The man said, the question pointed at Marine as he focused his gaze on her. Marine said nothing but narrowed her eyes at the man with contempt. He looked at everyone else with a frown before releasing Jack's wrist.

"No one but Rianna should have known this place. But since you've all seen it you might as well come along. That is, if you want to. I must warn you; we have a very long discussion ahead of us." He told them before turning around and swimming back towards his home inside the air bubble. Marine looked at everyone and saw that they didn't turn back. She didn't know whether to be touched by that or to think them all as foolish. Either way as she swam after the stranger, a smile grew on her face.

The dark gray eyed man led them to the coral reef that was right beside the air bubble. He moved as close to the floor as he could and pushed it, revealing something that looked like a trap door. Jack noted that it was also close to the place where he had placed the star-shaped rock. Once the man moved the door to the side, he gestured for them to go inside.

"Quickly now. I haven't got all day to stand around here waiting for you to get inside." He said impatiently. Jack was the first to enter the trap door followed by Marine. The rest followed them into the hole and found themselves floating in a very small cave-like room. The man entered last and closed the trap door above him. It was already dark so everyone had no problem adjusting to the dimness of the small place. Once the man was sure that the door was closed, he struggled past everyone and stopped right in front of the wall. He pushed it inwards and fell into another room together with the rest. There was no water in the one they entered so water flowed until it occupied as much space as possible.

Marine didn't cough but she felt like coughing just to feel that the water she had swam in was normal. Water fell from her whole body and dripped puddles from the tips of her hair and her chin. The others were also recovering from the sudden change of environment, spluttering water and gasping as if they hadn't breathed in a long time. Only the man made no reaction, having done the same ritual every single day he left the house to go to town. He walked past the rest in knee-deep water, brushing his wet, thinning, gray hair with his fingers, and lifted his leg over the ledge he made so that the water wouldn't flow into the house. Then he turned around to face them and held out his hands to either side of him.

"I welcome you all to the house under water."


	13. An Old Man's Tale

**AN: **Hi! Here is the next chapter to _The Other Treasure_. Read and Review but most of all, enjoy!

* * *

**_"I suppose it's my turn to tell a tale now. I was a good friend of your father...and your mother." - mysterious man_**

**Chapter 13 - An Old Man's Tale**

"You could have given us a warning before opening the door." Will muttered to himself as he shook the water from his hair. Everyone else was standing up and shaking water from themselves. Then the man helped each one of them get out of the puddle of pool and onto dry ground. Carrie wobbled a bit as she felt the last remnants of the feel of water on her whole body leave her. When the feeling was gone and she was able to stand without falling off-balance, she took a look around.

The house wasn't as grand as she had imagined it would be. It was a simple house with one bedroom, a bathroom and a kitchen where they were all standing in. It was not much but it was clean and neat-looking. The man ushered them all in and made them sit on chairs before the table. There wasn't enough for everyone to fit in so Jack, Will and Norrington volunteered to keep standing while the rest sat down.

"Rianna..." The man began. Marine narrowed her eyes at the man and interrupted him.

"Don't call me that." The man leaned back in his chair with a considering look.

"Ah yes. You're not known by that name anymore. When was it that you chose to use a pirate name for yourself just like your father? It's been a long time since I last saw you." He closed his eyes and looked up with a dreamy gaze as he recalled the times when they were younger. Marine wasn't going to beat around the bush with this man, pissed as she was at him for giving them all this trouble.

"Give me back my coin." She demanded. The man looked at her for a long while before taking the coin from the inside of his shirt pocket. When Jack and the others had heard her mention something about the coin, seeds of suspicion began to grow in them. All together, everyone except Jones and Carrie widened his/her eyes and stared at the glinting gold azctec coin that was tied with a thin nylon string. Jack stood back and looked at the coin apprehensively as Marine took it and tied it around her neck.

"You didn't tell me that you took one of the coins from the chest." Jack said accusingly, looking at Marine with a frown on his face. Marine looked back at the pirate with one eyebrow raised.

"This isn't the same cursed coin back at Isla De Muerta Sparrow. If this was the same one I'd be cursed and I'd look like a skeleton whenever I walked under the moonlight. And if you've noticed, I've been walking together with the rest of you during the night with my flesh and bones. My foster parents gave this coin to me-"

"Foster parents?" The man asked her with surprise, interrupting her sentence. "What are you talking about? Thomas was your real father and he was the one who gave you that coin. You never had foster parents." Marine looked from him to Jack to Will and the rest while she bit her lip hesitantly. She wasn't quite sure if she should let everyone hear her story or not. Jack, Elizabeth and Carrie weren't much help as she looked at them in question. They either shrugged or pretended not to understand, as Jack was specifically doing. But she didn't need to answer the question because as the man saw her look, realization dawned on him. He widened his eyes with a look of horror on his face.

"Oh no. This can't be. You're...you're the other child." He uttered in panic as he ungracefully stood up from his chair, knocking it to the floor. Everyone gave the man very confusing looks while the man himself began to mutter worriedly to himself. Norrington, Will and Jones looked the most confused among the group.

"What is he talking about?" Will asked her. Marine shook her head at him as she stood up and walked closer to the man. She could hear bits and pieces of what he was saying but understood none of what he said.

"I barely understood what he was saying. What are you talking about?" She asked, looking at the man who continued to ignore the chair on the ground and stared at nothing in particular while muttering incorrigible words. He looked back at Marine in a new light, as if seeing her for the first time. Then he moved across the distance from him and Marine so quickly that no one got the chance to react as he took out a dagger and placed it to Marine's throat. Marine was fast though and managed to get a dagger from her own clothes and blocked the blade with another blade. They glared at each other and felt their hands tremble as they pushed against each other.

"Tell me something no one in this place would know of." He said. "And when I mean place, I mean this whole _place_." He emphasized greatly on the word 'place' that Marine couldn't avoid not knowing what the man meant by it. She furrowed her brows in confusion but answered the man all the same.

"Computers, movies, internet, iPODs, MP4's, cars, cellphones, playstation 2, nitendo game cube, xbox...want me to go on? I can do this all day." She told him. The man dropped the dagger he held to his side and almost made Marine fall forward as he stepped back. Her body couldn't balance itself on time as the man grabbed the back of her vest, twirled her around and pulled down a part of her clothes to reveal the back of her shoulder. Carrie and the others were standing up and trying to see how they could help Marine out when they all froze and stared at the thing that the man had revealed. A large scar in the shape of a falcon was branded to the back of her shoulder.

"My fears have been confirmed. You are indeed the other child." He said as he moved back and righted the chair that he himself toppled to the ground. "I suppose I should have seen this coming. You were meant to know about it sooner or later. That explains why the men in town were furious with Sharpshooter Marine. But what I don't understand is how you know of your life here..." Marine looked in confusion at the others who returned a similar look to her. Giving a small and soft sigh of weariness, she fixed her shirt and vest and sat back down on the chair she had left a few minutes ago. She looked at the man as he himself sat down on his own chair once more.

"There are a lot of people in this room who don't know the whole story. So it would be best if I explained the truth to everyone in this room right now. Then, you can tell us your own story. Who you are, why you know of my world, how you knew my father in this world and what exactly are you talking about." She told him. The man gave a brief nod and listened as Marine told them her story. Of how she was from another world, came to this world, spent her first adventure with Jack and the rest of the supposedly non-existent characters and returned to her own world. She explained, as she looked at Carrie, that this was probably when Carrie had been sucked into the pirate world. Then she held out the coin once more and placed it on the table for everyone to see.

"It was during the funeral of my foster parents. I was standing before their graves, holding this coin, when all of a sudden I was swimming in water and was being pulled down by invisible hands. Then I found myself here once more, a day after Jack's escape."

"Actually, that coin had glowed a bright light before I went unconscious and found myself in this world too." Carrie added, looking at the coin warily. The man was still in a pensive mood as Marine ended her story with how they met the other, more cruel Marine and escaped her clutches. They waited for quite some time, the only sound that broke the silence being their breaths and the small things each one did during the waiting. Marine was about to check and see if he was still awake when the man opened his eyes and looked at them all.

"I suppose it's my turn to tell a tale now. First off all, my name is Cornelius Gashnet. I was a good friend of your father...and your mother."

* * *

The middle-aged and thin man crossed over piles of rocks and dirt and made his way over to the excavation point, where most of the activity was centered on. He gave a small wave at young workers who were throwing away the lose rocks aside to avoid causing a landslide before jumping into the large hole they made and landing on the ground on one knee. Brushing off some of the dirt that got to his clothes, the young man made his way towards three people who were crowed together and looking down at something quite large. He tilted his head to the confusion as he made his presence known within the group. 

"What's all this commotion I keep hearing back at the tent?" He asked. The woman-the only woman in the whole camp in fact-turned around, making her long black hair sway a bit, and smiled brightly at the man.

"Oh Cornelius. It's just marvelous! We found a large chest filled with priceless gold coins." She cried, looking at the two other men with her. The taller one, with a larger, tanned body smiled at the woman as he placed a hand on her shoulder lovingly. The woman's hand automatically went towards her stomach, and could not help but smile even wider. To the young newly wedded couple, life was perfect. Cornelius smiled at the two before walked closer and kneeling before the dusty old chest that was the center of all this attention. He picked up one of the gold coins and looked at the design with curiosity as it twinkled and reflected the sun's rays. He grazed the coin with his finger, feeling the shape of a skeleton with complicated patterns around the edges as he moved his hands over it.

"I've never seen such symbols in my life before. But from the looks of the chest, it seems to have been buried here for a very long time."

"Perhaps it is the supposedly unspoken treasure of Hernan Cortes. We are standing in the land where the Aztecs reigned and the Spaniards conquered hundreds of years ago after all." The fourth man spoke as he took another coin from the chest and looked at it. "The design of the coin is somehow quite similar to the art of the people during that time and era."

"Maurice is right." The man close to the woman said in agreement. "But we should bring it over to the research lab and get more information on it. Isn't this a great discovery? We're going to be famous!" He cried, wrapping the young woman in a tight hug and spinning her around on the spot. Cornelius laughed and shook his head from side to side as he watched the young couple laugh in delight. He could not blame the man for having dreams of fame and fortune at his age. It was the time when people still dreamed big and made ideals that somehow seemed farfetched as one grows older and wiser. He looked at the man named Maurice who was still looking at the coin in his hand.

"There's something engraved on these coins. Take a look." He said, handing it back to Cornelius. The other three gathered around Cornelius as he read the letters on the coin aloud.

"_Las trayectorias se abren en las que lo busquen._" (1)

"What on earth does that mean?" The woman asked.

"Paths open to those who seek it." Cornelius replied. He looked at the others with a sense of foreboding. The tall man took two coins from the chest after the woman asked for one. Together the four people inspected the coins even more intently than before, wanting to find out the meaning behind the message and the purpose of these coins. They were so intent on what they were doing that they didn't notice the fog that appeared beneath their feet and began to spread wider. In fact, when they finally noticed what was happening, they found themselves engulfed in a very thick fog.

"Thomas! What is happening?" The woman asked worriedly as she moved closer to the man. Thomas placed his arms around the woman protectively as he looked around.

"I don't know. Cornelius? Maurice? Are you two alright?" He asked aloud. There was the sound of scuffling feet as both Cornelius and Maurice walked slowly and carefully.

"Thomas? Clarissa? Where are you? I can't see a thing in this fog!" Cornelius cried as he stretched out his hands in front of him, trying to feel for some solid object. He could not make out where the couple was as he listened to their voices. The sounds within the fog seemed to come from all around him. He could hear Maurice give an 'omph' sound followed by a soft thud. He rubbed his face as he stopped walking. "Everyone please stop moving around and calm down! We can wait and see if the fog will disappear before anyone can get a serious injury."

"What about the workers?" Clarissa asked worriedly.

"They can handle themselves. We're not hearing anything from them so I'm assuming that they're all right." Cornelius said. But fogs don't usually appear in the jungles of Mexico do they? He thought silently to himself. He shook his head of the thought before facing towards the direction where he guessed Maurice would be. "Are you all right Maurice? That sounded like a bad fall back there."

"I'm fine." Maurice grumbled. "I bumped into something...the chest. Didn't see it in this blasted fog and fell over it." He explained. That was when all four noticed that the fog was slowly lifting up. Cornelius first saw Maurice who was standing beside the dark colored chest and walked over to him. Then they slowly saw Thomas and Clarissa who were looking at something else in front of them. The two were staring dumbly at whatever it is that they saw. Cornelius and Maurice couldn't see it as parts of the fog was still blocking their view.

"What is it?" Maurice asked them as he walked closer to where the two couple were, taking care not to trip on something and fall again. Cornelius followed the other man and stopped right beside Thomas and Clarissa. He followed the direction of their gaze and could not help but stare as well.

"Cornelius...I think we're not in Mexico anymore."

_TWO MONTHS LATER..._

Clarissa and Thomas looked from one arguing man to another with frowns on their faces. They were at the sitting room in the house they had bought in the small island of Nassau, built with five bedrooms, a sitting room or a living room for a more modern term, a kitchen and a small but beautiful garden right beside the house. After taking a look around the town that they found themselves in, they came to the conclusion that they had been sent to the past, during the 18th century to be specific. And during the first few weeks that they found themselves there, the four researchers struggled to find work to survive and hide their futuristic identities. The three men were able to find work through the blacksmith's shop, the vendors and storeowners in town while Clarissa found work as a seamstress.

They spent the whole time they were in the island trying to find a way back to their own world. They inspected the coins that they hid inside the house they had and tried to do everything they could think of at the coins. Unfortunately none of their ideas have worked. At the moment, Cornelius and Maurice were staring down and shouting angrily at each other in a heated discussion.

"We are not going to let everyone know of this! Do you have any idea how dangerous that would be to the nature of time? If people start moving back and forth within the two timelines there would be a very big chance that history would change everything and destroy the world as we know it."

"This only calls for more research Cornelius! Think carefully of what you're trying to keep from the masses. This is one of the greatest discoveries man has ever made and we're the first ones to find it. Who knows what other amazing discoveries we're going to find in the future. We can prevent wars and stop diseases from spreading. We can even apprehend criminals using this!"

"If changing even a single, trivial event could cause every event after it to change, think of how great the change will become if we tried doing it to something as big as wars. Aside from that, someone can simply go back in time and find out about this chest before we do. Then we won't be the discoverers and end up thinking that way too. It's going to be an endless battle over fame, fortune and the course of history itself!"

"We can solve this problem easily Cornelius! It's not as if we can't keep an eye on the chest and its coins. We can make it so that only the most trusted can take the chest. It's not going to be a problem that way. I implore you to consider this and say yes."

"No! I don't care how many times you're going to try and convince me otherwise. It's just not wise to bring this discovery to the people. And either way, we can't go back to our own time yet so there's no use trying to even think about it." Cornelius said firmly, standing up from the couch he was sitting on and walking away. "I'll be at the Faithful Bride drinking if anyone looks for me." Maurice looked down at the ground with his hands clenched into fists as the man passed him by without another word. They all heard the sound of the front door slamming angrily followed after by an awkward silence. Maurice turned his gaze at Thomas who was still frowning at what happened.

"You can't seriously expect us to go back to our own time and pretend to be ignorant of what happened do you Thomas? Don't tell me that you agree with him! You were just as eager to bring this back as I was. What made you change your mind now?" He asked him. Thomas glanced at Clarissa before looking at Maurice.

"Cornelius is right Maurice. This thing isn't ready for the world yet. I think we should put either keep it somewhere no one can find here or bring it with us and hide it there." Clarissa narrowed her eyes at Maurice.

"How can you even think of bringing this to the world when you know that it's only going to bring chaos and confusion in time itself? This is enough Maurice. Stop pestering Cornelius and leave the chest alone." She told him before walking up the stairs with Thomas following her. That left Maurice sitting alone in the sitting room with that feeling of irritation growing inside of him. He stood up and made his way to the kitchen with a determined look on his face. He went towards one of the wooden planks on the floor and slammed his boot on it, making the plank rise out of the ground with a soft creak. He took it and tossed it casually aside while looking hungrily into the hole he and the others had created for the chest.

It was still there and intact, the shadows within assisting in keeping the chest away from prying eyes. He bent down closer to the hole and reached into it with one hand. He was going to attempt another experiment on how they could get back to their own time. That was what he was going to worry himself over at the moment. He could think of ways to keep the chest and its wonderful, magical coins afterwards. His hands felt the rough surface of the chest and was about to bring it up when the door that led to the garden outside crashed to the floor with a loud bang and made a small cloud of dust appear. Maurice looked up in surprise as he watched Thomas enter with a snarl on his face and a gun in his hand.

"Thomas! What are you-" He couldn't finish his sentence as he saw Thomas aim the pistol at him. Maurice instinctively jumped to the side, using the counter as his shield as the sound of a gunshot echoed in his ears. He placed his hands over his head and winced when he heard the sound of the bullet collide with the edge of the counter he was hiding behind in. Maurice's eyes darted around the room frantically as he searched for something he could use to defend himself. The sound of nearing footsteps send his brain panicking as he remembered the wooden plank he had tossed aside. He looked for it and found it lying not far from Thomas. Wincing as if in pain, kicking himself mentally for throwing it there, he lunged for the plank as fast as he could right in front of the other man.

Thomas made to grab Maurice when the other man grabbed the plank and brought it up to the side of Thomas' head. The other man staggered back while Maurice stood up and thrust the plank to his guts. Thomas doubled over with pain and gave a loud grunt as he did so. Maurice lifted the plank high above his head and brought it down the man's head with every strength he had in him. The loud crack made Maurice wince as the other man quickly fell to the ground unconscious. He looked at the plank, now broken in two with the force of his strike, and threw it away for good. Then he stared at the unconscious man with confusion.

What the hell just happened here? Was he that angry at him that he would try to kill him just to keep the chest away from people?

The sound of people running down the stairs reached his ears. With no weapon in hand, he grabbed the empty gun Thomas had and aimed it at the door the moment it opened. He couldn't help but widen his eyes and drop the gun at the same time Thomas froze at the door and Clarissa screamed with fright. Maurice looked from the man in front of him to the man on the ground then back at the two newcomers.

"What the fucking hell is going on here?!" He cried. Before Thomas or Clarissa could reply, they heard the sound of the front door opening then closing with a loud slam. They looked at each other before warily walking back to the sitting room, with Clarissa following behind them. Cornelius was sitting on the couch and breathing heavily with blood running down his forehead. He looked up and almost fell off his chair with surprise and panic.

"Christ! What were you thinking, trying to kill me back there Maurice?" He shouted at the other man. Maurice raised an eyebrow at him before crossing his arms.

"Calm yourself Cornelius and think this over clearly. I wouldn't be standing here together with Thomas and Clarissa if I did try to kill you." He told him. "And besides, Thomas tried to kill me earlier as well." He made a gesture at the door that led to the kitchen with his head as he said this. Cornelius' eyebrows furrowed in confusion as he heard this. "I have no idea what's going on here but I suggest we leave this place before something else happens." He said.

"All right." Cornelius replied. "Pack as quickly and as lightly as you can. Maurice, get the chest in the kitchen. We have to leave now if we want to avoid any more trouble."

_THREE MONTHS LATER..._

The sound of the wind howling loudly made Cornelius want to plug his ears with anything at all just to keep the sound from getting to his head. They were all inside one of the ship's extra cabin, sitting and waiting for the heavy storm to pass by. He looked at the others who were just as uncomfortable and annoyed at their predicament as he was. Before all of them, sitting there idly, was the cause of all their problems from the moment they had set foot in that timeline. Lightning struck and thunder boomed loudly from outside, making everyone jump slightly in surprise. Maurice leaned towards the chest and was about to open it when Thomas made an outburst.

"Will you quit obsessing over that damn chest Maurice? If I see that damn coin one more time..."

"Thomas." Clarissa began, placing a hand on his knee and trying to calm him down. Maurice glared at him.

"At least I'm trying to do something with the situation we're in right now. At least I'm trying to find a way to get us back before those 'clones' of ours kills us!" He shouted back. The four spent the last three months running away from four people who look exactly like them. They have fallen into combat multiples of times but it usually ended up with the four original people running away from the clones. They had asked for passage on a ship and were currently sailing through the raging storms towards an island called Tortuga.

"That's enough from the two of you! The fact that we're fighting amongst ourselves is not helping us through this ordeal. The least you two can do is keep your anger to yourselves and be civil with each other." Cornelius told them. "Or better yet, Maurice will choose the clone Thomas while Thomas will choose the clone Maurice. That way you two can vent all your anger on each other without killing yourselves."

"But what are we going to do Cornelius? We can't spend the rest of our lives trying to run away from those clones. We have to figure out how to stop them or...or kill them if necessary." Clarissa said. Cornelius rubbed his face with his hand and gave a very weary sigh.

"I don't know Clarissa. I have no idea. I've been trying to think of a way to stop them when simply trying to kill them isn't enough. We have to take them by surprise. Get them to go unarmed against us. I don't know how yet, but we'll think of something." He said. "Best if everyone gets some sleep now. We're going to need all the strength we have if we want to live through this." He moved to the floor while Thomas and Clarissa lied down on the bed. Maurice was supposed to sleep on the hammock that was there but he shook his head and stood up.

"You sleep on the hammock Cornelius. I'm going to go outside for a bit of fresh air. No I am not going to go up on deck if that's what you're wondering." He said, interrupting Clarissa's concern. He turned around and made his way to the door, closing it quickly before anyone else could say anything.

The storm was still raging as violently as ever, making it hard for Maurice to walk through the hallway towards the galley where he knew no one would be in. Difficult as it was, he still managed to get there without tripping, stumbling or falling to the ground. He made his way to one of the chairs in the galley and sat down on it, looking about the room for no reason at all. His fingers tapped the table with nothing else to do but wait.

"You're late." Maurice turned around to face the dark shadow that suddenly loomed in one of the darkest corner of the room. He didn't move into better light so that Maurice could see him but he didn't care. He already knew who the man was.

"You can't just go out of the room without some sort of plausible excuse. I had to wait to get out or they'll be suspicious." The dark shadow didn't say anything for a while, until Maurice started the conversation. "I've thought about what you offered and I'm willing to accept it with a condition. We are not to initiate this plan as long as Clarissa is still pregnant." He couldn't see it, but he swore the man in the dark corner gave him a smile as wide as the Chesire Cat's in Alice in Wonderland.

"Ah yes. Of course. I wholeheartedly agree on your condition. Our own lovely woman is having a hard time with the pregnancy. She swears to make the other woman pay for bringing her such hardships." He said. This made Maurice cringe. "Well that seems to solve that part of the problem. Now the only remaining issue we have left is about the two of us." Maurice hesitated, before opening his mouth to speak.

"I don't think this will work..."

"Of course it will!" The other man cried cheerfully. "I and my own mates know how this works. We need to know this if we want to become whole and complete after all. Once our bodies merge, we'll become one complete soul. My memory will be your memory and your memory will be mine. It's like sharing the same body except you're sharing it with yourself. You wouldn't even know the difference!"

"But my consciousness...my own mind...if we merge, we're going to be using your mind and consciousness isn't that right?"

"Technically speaking it will be since I am the one who will be initiating the merging. But you wouldn't know it either way. It would be perfectly normal and fine I assure you. Now, do you have it?" Maurice placed a hand into his pockets and rummaged for something inside it. He brought it back out, revealing a gold Aztec Coin that he had taken from the chest. The man in the shadows took it from him and smiled.

"Excellent. Now come closer. It's about time to merge ourselves together."

_A MONTH LATER..._

Thomas and Cornelius looked at Clarissa with sadness in their eyes as the former man held a bundle in his arms gently. The woman lay on her back on the bed at the inn with her weary eyes staring at the two men determinedly.

"It's for the best." She muttered partly to convince herself. "Better in our time than in this; where we live now as dangerous pirates and where Maurice and the rest of them are trying to kill us." Her words stung badly to everyone in the room. The betrayal of their good friend had been a big blow to them all. Cornelius' concentrated gaze broke when he heard the soft cry of an infant from the bundle in Thomas' arms. He cradled the baby and swung the bundle from side to side, gently lulling the baby back to sleep. To their relief the infant stopped and began to breathe deeply. Thomas looked up at his wife.

"Are you sure you want this? It's not too late to go back."

"No I'm sure of it. My daughter has a chance of surviving back in our time than in here; with or without her parents to take care of her."

"We can use the coin and go back with her. Escape this whole mess." Clarissa shook her head stubbornly.

"We created this mess and it's up to us to stop it. And I don't think we can go back even if we wanted to. Incomplete souls can't go in there and survive. You saw what happened to the other Cornelius when he..." She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. "Enough of the stalling. We have to do this now or I'll never get the courage to do it." Thomas and Cornelius were still hesitant about it but once they saw the intent look on Clarissa's face they knew that they had to do it. For the sake of the child in Thomas' arms. The two men let the mother of the child bid goodbye with a tear and a kiss on the forehead before lying back on the bed and sleeping uncomfortably.

Thomas and Cornelius went out of the room and made their way to a secluded alley close to the inn they were staying in. The man holding the bundle could feel his hands trembling greatly as they stopped at their destination. He looked at the other man who looked back calmly.

"Do you have it?" Thomas handed the bundle to Cornelius as he rummaged for something that he hid in his clothes.

"I don't know how you predicted that this was going to happen, but here it is. I had the blacksmith make it just the way you told me to." Thomas pulled out a metal stick with one end having the shape of a falcon. Cornelius took out his lighter from the future and began to heat the falcon-shaped steel. Thomas took back the bundle from Cornelius and looked at the other man worriedly. "Are you sure this is necessary?"

"There will come a time when the young child will want to find out her true origins. If and when she does, this will help us identify her as your child. I want her to have that opportunity to know that her parents did not abandon her without reason and would have been the greatest parents a kid could ever have given the chance." He said, looking up at Thomas with a smile. The other man smiled back gratefully before looking at the steel. It was starting to turn red now, little sparks began to brighten and dance on the steel.

When Cornelius was content with the hotness of it, he gave a nod to Thomas. The man opened the bundle and gently brought the baby close to his chest while he revealed the back of her shoulder to Cornelius. He closed his eyes and fought the urge to vomit as he heard the sizzling sound of something burning and the smell of burnt skin. He struggled to keep the baby still as the baby cried and wailed loudly in pain. He thanked the gods that the baby wasn't smart like adults or the pain would have been worse. Once Cornelius was done he looked at the hot and glowing shape of the falcon on the baby's previously flawless skin and patted the hair gently.

"You're a strong kid. Stay safe." He whispered before moving back and taking out the gold coin they had and tying it up with a string of thin rope. He placed the makeshift necklace around the child and re-wrapped her in the bundle of blankets. Thomas then set the bundle down on the ground and watched with tears in his eyes as a soft glow emanated from the coin and surrounded the baby. In an instant the baby was gone; without any sign of her being there in the first place. Thomas felt a rip in his heart, as if the baby had taken a part of him with her back to the future. He closed his eyes and let the tears fall to the ground. It was the only way, he knew, if he wanted his daughter to be safe.

"I'm sorry. Please take care of yourself love. Your mother and I will always love you no matter what happens."

* * *

Sniffs could be heard amidst the silence as Carrie and Elizabeth dried the tears that were springing from their eyes at the heart-wrenching story they were listening to. Will and Jones looked at Marine who sat there emotionlessly and motionlessly. Even Norrington gave her a half-sympathetic glance as Cornelius took a deep breath and looked at the pirate woman. Marine was taking the time of silence to take everything she had just heard within those minutes in. The fact that she truly had been from her own world and that her parents were in fact, very morally good people overwhelmed her. A warm and rough hand held her shoulder gently. Marine turned her head to face Jack who had a sympathetic look on his face. Tired of being the pathetic one, Marine shrugged off Jack's hand and looked at Cornelius. 

"So what happened to you and why is my mother a prostitute now?" Cornelius' face fell as he looked down at the table.

"We fought, as you would have obviously predicted. We fought against our clones and managed to merge with them. Your father and I succeeded and were safe as far as attacking clones were concerned. Maurice on the other hand, escaped our grasp and has never been seen or mentioned again...until now. But your mother...well the clone was much stronger despite both of their predicaments. The clone merged with your mother." He explained sadly. "Poor Thomas was so furious with that. He was about to kill her too but he couldn't kill the face of the woman he loved and neither could I. We told her to leave and never let us see her again after that."

"And the baby was handed over to you." Marine said, the pieces in the puzzle slowly fitting in their spots. "So that's how I ended up being in two places at once. But then...why did I dream of my time here, and how come this other Marine only popped out on the second time I came here?" She asked him. Cornelius had a considering look on his face as he pondered on the question.

"I don't have a clue as to how you had those dreams of yours but based on what I've heard from you, you came here the first time without the help of the coin. This issued no clone and since you had a part of you that was already here, it didn't bode any problems and simply placed you to your body. You used the coin unknowingly the second time and this made way for a clone. The clone, since it would come from this time, adopted the pirate Marine while you remained your old self." That made sense to Marine and she was willing to take it with nothing else to go on with. Cornelius turned his head to Carrie then.

"Did you or Marine here feel a headache after you came here?" Carrie's brows furrowed as she scratched the back of her head.

"Actually...now that I think about it, I did get a headache when I woke up. How about you Vanessa?" She asked, looking at her best friend. Marine pursed her lips as she tried to think of it.

"I did. The second time that is. I felt nothing the first time I came here." She said in agreement. Cornelius sighed as he leaned against the chair he was sitting on.

"Then it's confirmed. You and your friend here have your own clones after you. I'm guessing that their goals are just the same as our clones beforehand; for their souls to become complete." He gave another sigh as he closed his eyes. "Since you've not mentioned the young woman's clone, perhaps it is safe to say that they have not met yet. You can use this as your chance to get the clone and merge with her before she does it to you first." He told Carrie. "If you are to do it, then you must do it quickly. The other Marine will not let you go on your own so easily without a fight." He stood up after that.

"Well I shall make us all something to eat. All this talking has made me hungry." He said. He was about to head for the stove when Jones stood up from his chair.

"Wait! Mr. Gashnet, what happened to the chest?" He asked. Cornelius stopped to look at Jones with a frown.

"Thomas and I hid it. We rode on the ship we became crew of and searched the whole world for the prefect place to keep it in; where no one would find it ever again. We found that perfect place and it's there where the chest lies. Hopefully never to be held by any hand ever again."

"Do you have the map that leads to this? The other Marine had previously asked me to find you and steal a map from you." He said. Cornelius couldn't help but laugh aloud at him, surprising everyone in the room.

"Map? I guess it would only be logical for me to make a map of it in case I was to die and wanted to hand the information to some other soul." He muttered to himself before looking at Jones amusingly. "Lad, I wouldn't be fool enough to leave a map with the directions to the chest on it lying about even if my house was impossible to get into unless you knew how. It's all in here." He tapped the side of his head for emphasis, with a grin on his face.

"All the more reason for the other clone to get to you now." Marine told him. "Mr. Gashnet, please come with us on the Black Pearl. You'll be safer there with the rest of us rather than here where there is still a possibility that the clones will get to you." Cornelius sighed and looked at the room.

"I guess it is best for me to do so. It's been a long time since I've set foot on a ship. The last one was during your father's funeral." He said, looking at Marine. Jack looked from Marine to Cornelius as they gave each other sad, thoughtful looks then grinned and placed his arms behind his bed casually.

"Well then! Now that we have that settled, let's have that meal you mentioned. And don't forget the rum! Mustn't forget the rum." He said. Cornelius laughed as he looked away from Marine and began walking once more.

"Aye, the rum. We can't forget that." He disappeared around the corner, probably to get some ingredients. While he was gone, Elizabeth pressed both of her hands on the table and looked at Marine with intense eyes.

"I have made up my mind! After I get married to Will I shall accompany you in your journey and help you kill these clones." She declared. Everyone was surprised, but no one was as surprised as Will was. His eyes were so wide that they seemed to pop out of his head.

"Bu-but Elizabeth..." He stuttered.

"No Will. After listening to Mr. Gashnet tell us his story I am now more than determined to help Marine out. She deserves our help after she has helped us before." She told him. Then she set her attentions on Norrington who, before Elizabeth looked at him, was half-upset and half-amused at the exchange between the couple. "We shall go to Port Royal with your promise that no harm shall come to Jack or his crew. And I shall invite Jack and the others to the wedding. I do not care what the other guests will say on it! Marine and Jack are the reason that I am getting married in the first place and they will get the treatment they deserve. And if you even think of leaving port without me Jack Sparrow, I swear on my mother's grave that I will find you and your ship and that you shall pay dearly for leaving me behind and regret your decision for the rest of your life." Will was still stuttering, trying to find a way to convince his wife not to go through with her plan while Jack watched the young couple with an amused look on his face. Jones sighed and shook his head slowly from side to side.

"Well whatever your plans are I don't intend on being in on them. As soon as you finish whatever it is you need to do at Port Royal could you bring me back to Nassau Jack?" He asked. Before Jack could open his mouth and reply, Elizabeth set her eyes on the thief, causing him to shrink back in fear.

"Oh no you're not! If we leave you anywhere in this world, the clone shall most likely be there to get you. And once she does get you she's going to get the information out of you. And knowing you, you wouldn't hesitate in telling her everything you know. So you can either be killed and keep the information with you or stay with the crew and help Marine out." She said. Marine bit the side of her cheek to keep her face from breaking into a grin. For a woman of high-classed propriety, Elizabeth was a force to be reckoned with. She wondered once more if Elizabeth had a mother who used to be a pirate before she married Governor Swann. Jones looked at Elizabeth fearfully before closing his eyes, heaving a heavy sigh and looking away from the piercing gaze.

"All right. Fine. I'll stay and help." He grumbled. Instantly Marine and Jack laughed at their old and good friend. Jones narrowed his eyes at them but didn't bother opening his mouth to give a retort. Knowing the two pirates well, he'd be lucky to get off with only one annoying, seemingly humorous comment. Elizabeth wasn't in a very cheerful mood, knowing that her intentions have not been fully met yet. She pointed a finger at Marine, causing her to stop laughing and look at the other woman curiously.

"And you! I don't care what you say but you are going to my wedding wearing a beautiful dress that I shall provide for you whether you like it or not! Jack, you are going to look cleaner than usual or I will throw a bucket of water on you and scrub you clean until you're bleeding red." Jack winced as if in pain while Marine chuckled softly.

"I don't mind that Liz. In fact, I would love to be at your wedding. But what about your father and the rest of the Navy?"

"I'll take care of them. All you have to do is relax and prepare yourself for my wedding. Is that clear?"

"Crystal." Marine replied with a smile on her face. She looked at Carrie who was beaming at Elizabeth proudly the way a mother would do to her child. A few theories on how Elizabeth came to this sudden determined decision came to Marine's mind but she didn't point it out or complained about it.

Cornelius came back half an hour later bringing with him plates of food for everyone. Jack, Will and Norrington still stood as they ate while the rest sat on the chairs around the table and exchanged stories and conversations with each other. At that moment, Marine felt none of the pressures of her fate and the fights she would embark on. She was glad to have enjoyed a moment without worrying about her life or her friends' lives.

But like all other good things, they must come to an end.

(1) I got this translated in a not so good online translator so for those who knows Spanish forgive me if I made any mistakes.


	14. Port Royal

_**"Here's the plan. As nice as it would be for the Black Pearl to simply go into the port without any troubles from Norry's men, I highly doubt that that would happen at present." - Captain Jack Sparrow**_

**Chapter 14 - Port Royal**

Marine felt the wonderful sea breeze kiss her face and blow her hair in all directions as she stood behind the rails of the Black Pearl and watched the small island of Tortuga slowly disappear in the distance. The bright yellow lights that came from most of the taverns and inns blinked until the darkness of the night engulfed them. Carrie and Elizabeth were at their cabin, taking a good night's rest after a very eventful trip ashore. Will and the others were about the ship as well, getting their well earned rest. Her mind came back to the ship as one of the crewmembers slapped her back in a friendly manner and made a soft grunt of apology. She forced a smile on her face before letting it form into a frown as the man made his way to the crew's quarters.

She gave a loud sigh and propped up her elbows on the railings once she was sure the last of them had left. She was glad of the sudden increase of crewmembers on the ship-heck Jack was ecstatic to find out that he was going to have at least 10 more people running his ship under his commands-but the manner in which they had come to the decision was both amusing and puzzling.

_Norrington had been ordered by Jack to go to the ship and tell the crew to assemble themselves by nighttime. They planned on leaving when there was a lesser chance of anyone seeing the Black Pearl leave the docks. Everything had been settled, Cornelius had packed his belongings, and everyone had finished having their dinner. They left the air bubble that was Cornelius' home and made their way to the port as quietly and as quickly as they could. But before they could step onto the Pearl's gangplanks, it was blocked by a large group of men._

_All of the men, except Jones and Cornelius, plus Marine, stepped in front of Elizabeth and Carrie protectively as they placed hands on the hilts of their swords or on the grips of their pistols. The men were just as equally armed and were looking at the small group with snarls and growls. Marine had finally had enough and stepped one step further towards the other group. She narrowed her eyes at them and placed her hands on her hips._

_"I have had it with the likes of ye! What the hell do ye want from me?" She shouted._

_"You promised us gold and treasures and adventures ye lying wench!" One of the large men shouted back. "Ye came to Tortuga with that swaggerin' arrogant pride of yours and told us that if we promise to become your crewmembers that ye'd give us all what we want." Jack stepped right beside Marine and placed a hand on her shoulder._

_"If it's adventure and gold and treasures ye be wanting, then you're all welcome to join the Black Pearl under my command of course!" He said, giving Marine a wink before speaking before the group of men once more. "We be under a very dangerous and life-threatening adventure at the moment. 'S nothing Captain Jack Sparrow can handle though so there's no worries about that."_

_"There has been a very big misunderstanding among you and Marine." Jones added, shrinking back a little when all of the men looked at him. "You actually spoke with a clone. An impostor and one who should have regretted not picking you as a fine and mighty crew. The woman you see before you is the real Shaprshooter Marine and she would never lie to men such as yourselves." The men looked at each other doubtfully until Jack caught their attentions once more._

_"What say ye mates? Join my crew and I shall give you everything you want and probably more." He offered with a grin on his face. One of the men raised his fist into the air and gave a loud 'AYE' that made everyone else in that group follow and shout and cheer._

"A penny for your thoughts?" At first Marine thought it was Jack who had interrupted her thoughts once more. Then she recognized the figure of speech in the words and knew that neither Jack nor anyone else in that timeline would have used a phrase like that. She turned her head to the side and watched as Cornelius walked up beside her and leaned his elbows on the railings. She gave a small smile before looking ahead of her, at the empty and silent deck.

"Just thinking of what happened back there. These men aren't that scary once you spoke with them properly." She said. Cornelius chuckled and nodded in agreement, knowing what Marine was talking about.

"Yes, let's just be glad that they're considerate enough and nice enough to understand your situation and believe in our story of clones as unbelievable as it sounded."

"It's Jack Sparrow. Everything concerning him is either strange, unlikely, or downright impossible. The stories about him would see to that."

"Speaking of Jack Sparrow," Cornelius looked at her curiously as he spoke. "I remember you mentioning something about them being in a book or a story or something like that."

"Oh that. Well...your thinking that this is a different time is not wholly true. Actually, this is in a different alternative world. Because in our own world, Jack Sparrow, Will Turner and the rest of them are in a movie called 'Pirates of the Caribbean' which is in turn based on a book about Jack Sparrow himself. I can't tell them that because it would only make them even more confused about all this." She explained. Cornelius raised his eyebrows with understanding and gave a slight nod of his head to tell her that he understood.

"I see...that explains it. Who knew huh? That you'd watch something similar to this and find yourself in the world itself. I wonder what it would have been like supposing your father and I met up with Jack Sparrow and were a part of his adventure."

"You probably have met Jack or his parents without him knowing it. Barbossa killed my father after all, and he used to be Jack's first mate. It's a small world. And after everything I've been through, I've come to realize this even more." She said. "I mean, who knew that I had a supposedly twin sister who is in fact an evil clone because I came here with a cursed coin that looks a lot like the cursed coin Jack and his first crew went after years ago." Cornelius chuckled and patted her head softly.

"Your mother and father would have been so proud of you. You've grown into a very fine young woman." He told her. Marine grimaced.

"A fine young woman who's stuck in a very tight, life-or-death situation." Cornelius frowned as he looked away from her.

"I'm sorry that you and your young friend had to go through all this. If we had not discovered that treasure; if only we had told your mother not to come along with us, then you would not be experiencing these troubles." He said. Marine shook her head and moved in front of him so he could see her smile.

"Don't be sorry about that. If you hadn't done everything you did in the past, I would be the person I am right now. And I wouldn't have met Jack or Will or the rest personally." She looked at the captain's cabin, where she knew Jack was sound asleep in. "I've gained as much as I've lost through everything that's happened to me so don't feel so regretful about it. You did what you did because you were young and very talented researchers. I'm just glad I got to know a little bit more about my mother." She said with a sad smile. Cornelius brought her face to his and felt a tear fall from his eye.

"You look so much like your mother Marine. So beautiful, so kind and friendly. But you've got your own tiny spark; that lovable charm that would get men falling head over heels for you. I suppose your father being the bold, arrogant and witty fool that he is should be thanked for that." He muttered. Marine laughed and at the same time felt a blush come to her cheeks at the compliment.

"So...where did you get that cool bubble dome thing and how did you manage to make it breathable under the lake?" She asked him to change the subject. Cornelius laughed and smiled at her mysteriously.

"I've been here for years lass. And my passion for research has got gone away ever since. Most of what I've discovered I discovered while I was going on adventures with your father on his ship before you were old enough to understand piracy and the fights. You father, being your father, told a lot of pirates and commoners stories of our little trips. This has made people think of me as someone very specialized in the supernatural and the like." He explained. Marine furrowed her brows then widened her eyes in surprise.

"You're the man who has so much knowledge in that kind of things? You're the supernatural person?" He gave an offhand shrug.

"I'm not too proud about having a plain title like that but I'm not denying it either. So yes, I'm that man." He told her. "I find it ironic how you've searched all throughout Tortuga for a man with profound knowledge in the supernatural and a man named Cornelius Gashnet. Instead, you find a man who tried to kill you, thinking you were someone else. Then finally, when you find that man who tried to kill you, you realize that you were looking for one person the whole time." He chuckled after he said it and smiled at Marine.

"Very ironic." She agreed with a smile in return. "Guess fate has a way of making things go their way even if it doesn't seem so at first." A few seconds after she spoke she found herself yawning sleepily in front of him and gave an embarrassed, apologetic look. Cornelius smiled kindly and made a shooing gesture at her.

"Go on to bed. It looks like you need it badly." He said. Marine smiled again and nodded slightly. She turned around and after bidding Cornelius a good night, began to head to the cabin she shared with Elizabeth and Carrie. She stopped after walking a few steps and turned her head around to look at him. Out of a sudden impulse she couldn't explain, she ran up to him and threw her arms around him. Cornelius took a step back and almost fell over the railing as he placed his hands on her waist to steady the two of them. Marine was hugging him tightly and he could feel his shirt become slightly soaked. He patted her head and hugged back, silently apologizing to her all over again for everything that she's been through.

After a short while Marine let him go and with an embarrassed smile, headed towards the stairs without a second look back. Cornelius leaned on the railing and watched her as she went down below deck. He watched her and looked up at the stars in the black velvet sky, imagining the two young couple smiling down at him. He smiled back at them and wiped another tear that fell from his eye.

"If only the two of you could see how much your daughter has grown."

* * *

"Land ho!" One of the men shouted from the crow's nest as he pointed at something ahead of them. Jack, who was standing at the helm before the wheel at the time, took out his looking glass and placed his eye over it. He could see the small island slowly growing larger as they came nearer to it. The winds were on their side, blowing them towards their destination quickly. He replaced the telescope back in his pouch and called for Gibbs to take the helm. Then he moved to the side and made his way to Will and the others who were standing close to the bow and looking at said island. He stood beside Will and Norrington and placed one arm around each one to the other two's annoyance. 

"I can see that you want nothing more than to set your landlubbing legs ashore but I can also see how sad you will become as soon as we part our ways." He commented. "You must be so envious of the whelp for his chance to go on a grand adventure with the Captain Jack Sparrow. But as much as you want to be under my command on the greatest ship on earth, I cannot take you away from your own little life as Commodore." Norrington snorted and was muttering to himself while Will rolled his eyes. Elizabeth turned to face Jack and raised a finger at him. She was about to open her mouth but Jack did it first.

"Yes Lizzie love, I will be at your wedding looking very clean and as proper as a pirate like myself can get. And I will be on my best behavior while I'm at your wedding." He added before Elizabeth could say anything else. The young woman frowned at Jack but gave him a satisfied look.

"You better do so Jack." She looked at Carrie and Marine with a giddy, excited face. "Oh I can't wait to see what has happened to my wedding and what father has done to it while we were away."

_I can't wait to get a nice, warm, refreshing bath after more than a month without it! _Marine thought to herself. Carrie was thinking along the same lines as she looked at Port Royal eagerly. Will made a nervous face as he listened to his soon-to-be wife speak of their wedding with enthusiasm.

"I told your father to go on with the preparations of the wedding while we were out getting you back but I had no idea if he planned on actually doing it..." Will said. Elizabeth looked at him.

"I'm sure he did so. My father trusts you to keep your word." She told Will, placing a comforting hand on his and squeezing it tightly. Will smiled back at her before his attentions went back to Jack who still had not removed his arms from them.

"Here's the plan. As nice as it would be for the Black Pearl to simply go into the port without any troubles from Norry's men, I highly doubt that that would happen at present. Therefore, we're going to let the crew stay a few miles away from Port Royal while the rest of us who wants to go to land ride on one of the lifeboats." He turned to Jones and Cornelius in question, who both shook their heads in reply.

"Thanks but no thanks. I'm not comfortable being in big events and large crowds. I'll only be a nuisance and a distraction to the wedding even if I did go. But I congratulate the two of you and wish you all the best in your marriage." Cornelius told Will and Elizabeth with a smile.

"Same here." Jones muttered. Jack looked around, waiting for anyone else to speak up. When no one did he removed his arms from Will and Norrington and looked at the crew.

"Prepare two lifeboats men! And Gibbs, make sure you and the crew keep an eye on any Navy guards who think they can take the Pearl without its captain." He ordered them. The men gave nods before bustling about with energy. Two small boats were prepared and dropped to the sea within a few minutes of the captain's orders. The ladies hopped into one while the men rode on the other. Together, they rowed as fast as they could towards shore.

Norrington was the first to notice the large group of guards waiting at the docks with their rifles aimed at them. He stood up to make his presence known and once they were close enough, ordered them to withhold their guns. The guards looked at each other before reluctantly lowering their guns and waiting for the two boats to strike land. Marine could see Norrington's annoyance and Jack's amusement at the situation. Who would have thought that the Commodore would order his men not to aim their rifles at a pirate and to tell them that said pirate was supposed to be unharmed and not arrested while they were in Port Royal. Marine grinned at the thought and couldn't wait to piss Norrington even more. Elizabeth had probably seen the look because she poked Marine's arm and gave her a warning look.

Once they got out of their boats, Governor Swann appeared before them and rushed to his daughter. He gave her a tight hug and blabbered a lot about how relieved he was to see that she was safe. The others walked up to them in silence with Norrington in the lead. The guards surrounding them were a bit wary of Jack and Marine but made no move to aim their rifles at them. Governor Swann stopped hugging Elizabeth to look at the group with a frown.

"What is the meaning of this Commodore? I want you to arrest these three scoundrels and send them to the gallows as soon as possible!" Elizabeth looked at her father with a look of horror.

"No! I won't allow that father! Carrie is not a pirate and she was not part of my kidnapping. In fact, she was what the pirates wanted, not me. And I won't allow you to take Jack and Marine as prisoners. Jack is the reason the Commodore, Will and I are still alive at present. He had the kindness to take us aboard his ship while the Accelerator was about to blow up in flames. Marine on the other hand is not the person who kidnapped us. Commodore Norrington and Will were mistaken when they assumed that before." She explained to him. Governor Swann looked doubtful as he glanced at the three but one look from his daughter made him concede with a regrettable sigh.

"Very well. They shall not be arrested. But I want them out of Port Royal at once!"

"I won't allow that as well, father. I have invited Jack Sparrow and Marine to my wedding and nothing you say will change that fact." She told him determinedly before the older man could put in a word of his own. "I will give you my promise that they will be on their best behavior as long as they are under me. In return I demand that no guard will arrest them and no harm should befall them while they are here." Governor Swann took in a deep breath as he rubbed his face. Marine felt sorry for Governor Swann. As much as she liked Elizabeth, she wasn't going to like having a daughter like her.

"All right. I will allow them to stay here unharmed just this once. But I want them gone as soon as the wedding is over." Elizabeth smiled and rushed to hug her father happily. Governor Swann gave a heavy sigh but smiled at his daughter lovingly. Marine swore under her breath that she was going to be on her very best behavior during her stay at Port Royal. Governor Swann had no idea that Elizabeth intended on going along with them for the whole ride and she felt bad for making it hard for the old man. She moved closer to Carrie and muttered under her breath.

"I pray to god that I won't have a daughter like Elizabeth. Should I be given that opportunity." The other younger woman chuckled and gave a slight nod of her head.

"You said it Vanessa." Elizabeth turned to face them with a bright and happy smile. Fortunately for the two women, Elizabeth had not heard them speak of her that way. She grabbed both women's arms and began pulling them deeper into town. Marine and Carrie had not expected the sudden drag and almost stumbled on each other as they tried to follow Elizabeth through the growing, morning crowd.

"The girls and I shall be out looking for dresses then. See you all in the evening!" She cried. Marine felt her face pale as she heard Elizabeth and wanted nothing more than to run as far away from the young woman as possible.

"Evening?!"

* * *

Elizabeth was laughing as she brought Carrie and Marine into the first store selling gowns and dresses. The female pirate narrowed her eyes at Elizabeth with her arms crossed while Carrie simply looked from one to the other in amusement. Elizabeth picked out one of the dresses and looked at Marine with an amused smile. 

"I was kidding Marine! You don't think I am capable of looking for dresses from morning until night do you?"

"I've seen and met a lot of people who could." Marine muttered under her breath. Then out loud, "Perhaps. I wouldn't know. You were part of an adventure story, not a chic-flick."

"Chic-flick?"

"Never mind. So that should look pretty good on Carrie..." Marine began, moving towards Elizabeth and taking the dress from her hands. Carrie coughed as she hid her laughter from the two and followed them through more stores as they looked for clothes that the two women approved of. Marine had a very amused and large smile on her face as she walked together with Elizabeth throughout town. People kept looking at them from left to right, whispering to each other and looking at the pistols that hung on the female pirate's holsters warily. She especially liked the way the Navy guards looked at her as she passed by them freely and openly. Carrie wasn't appreciative of this though, and tried to act friendly to those they passed by. No one wanted to go near them and rushed off as fast as they could to Carrie's disappointment. A small child looked up at Carrie and Marine with wide, innocent eyes and took a brave step closer to them. Carrie saw this and crouched in front of the young child with a gentle smile on her face.

"Hello there. Are you lost or something?" The child said nothing and simply continued to look up at Carrie in curiosity. Carrie was about to open her mouth and say something else when she heard a woman scream loudly. She stood up and watched as a woman walked up to the kid and hugged him close to her. The woman began to move away from Carrie while narrowing her eyes at her with so much hate.

"What do you think you're doing with my son you filthy, dirty pirate? Just because you're free to roam about like you own the town doesn't mean that you do. Stay away from my son or I will call the guards and tell them to arrest you for assault." She shouted angrily while clutching her son close to her. Both Carrie and the young child were surprised with the sudden turn of events as they looked at the hysterical woman. Carrie tried to take a step forward, reaching out a hand to the other woman.

"I wasn't doing anything to harm him. I was just..."

"No. I don't want to hear it. You pirates are all just the same. Lying, stealing and kidnapping people just to get money and to get whatever it is you want. Why don't you just go back to your pirate ship and make some other town suffer with your pirate ways?" The woman shouted as she took a step back from her, avoiding the hand that reached out. Carrie widened her eyes and opened her mouth to give an angry retort when Marine appeared at her side and grabbed her shoulders firmly. Without waiting for a reply or a word from Carrie, she began to drag her away from the woman and her child.

"Yes that's right! Leave this place before you bring more trouble for us innocent bystanders! Filthy pirates should be hanged to death instead of walking around town freely. What are these navy guards thinking of..." Carrie felt hurt, angry and ashamed as she was forcefully pulled to where Elizabeth was standing worriedly. Marine said nothing as she pulled Carrie away from the crowd but Carrie didn't plan on staying quiet.

"Stop dragging me Vanessa! I want to go back there and give that woman a piece of my mind."

"And what do you expect them to do? To listen to you? To start trusting you?" Marine asked as she let go of Carrie and looked at her. She saw the hurt expression in Carrie's face and softened her own with a heavy sigh. "You should remember that people during these times don't think too lightly of pirates. In this time and age, pirates are feared and hated by villagers; with good reason. Not everyone's like Jack Sparrow, Carrie; and Jack is still a lying pirate like it or not. You should keep in mind that these pirates aren't the heroic characters you read in books or watch on movies or TV."

"But Vanessa..."

"No. There are no buts. Even I have to admit that I'm one of those filthy pirates she's talking about. Here in this world that is. You can't make an excuse for stealing or plundering Carrie but it's the true essence of being a pirate." Carrie frowned and looked down sadly but made no more move to object or complain. Marine closed her eyes and took another deep breath. She wanted her to let go of her fantasies of becoming a pirate but she didn't want Carrie to get hurt so hard and so harshly. Not knowing what else to say, the female pirate turned around and called for Elizabeth who came walking up to them still with that worried look on her face.

"Is everything alright? What happened?" She asked, looking from one female to the other. Marine shook her head at Elizabeth, not bothering to hide her feelings.

"It's nothing serious. Just a case of being hated as pirates by people." She replied. Carrie was still looking down as Marine spoke and didn't bother to lift her head up. Elizabeth sighed and rubbed her forehead. She moved to Carrie's side and led her through the streets while Marine walked behind them alone and close to her own thoughts.

"I'm so sorry about what happened Carrie...but you musn't let that bring your spirits down." Elizabeth said as she tried to comfort Carrie. She looked over her shoulder at Marine who was busy pondering on her own thoughts to notice them. She looked back at the younger woman with a small smile. "It's not like being a pirate's the most important thing in life. I mean, I'm not a pirate but I'm perfectly happy with Will." Carrie stayed silent as she walked together with the other two. Although it didn't look like it, Marine had been listening to Elizabeth and walked up to the woman's other side when Carrie still didn't reply.

"Give her time to recover from the shock. I'm sure it's a harsh blow to her belief and ideals of pirates."

"I know what people think of pirates in this time! I'm not an immature idiot who thinks pirates are cool and heroic and do nothing but save people and do good deeds." Carrie burst out angrily as she turned around to face Marine. The female pirate stopped and looked back calmly at her best friend. "I know how bad pirates are. But...but I just want to think that maybe there are still some pirates out there who can be good. I'm not saying that every pirate should be good. I just know that there are. And I believed that people knew this as well. I guess I thought wrong in so many ways." She said before turning around and running away from the two women. Elizabeth tried to stop Carrie but held back and took a deep breath.

"She needs this time alone to breathe doesn't she?" Marine shook her head and nudged Elizabeth forward.

"Right now more than ever, Carrie needs someone there to comfort her. I'm not the right person at the moment it seems. But can you please do it for me? I'll go back to your mansion and wait there." She said. Elizabeth looked at Marine with a sad smile before nodding to her and running after the younger woman. Marine watched Elizabeth's form grow smaller as she chased Carrie through the streets. Once she was sure that the two women where nowhere to be seen, she began to make her way back to Elizabeth's mansion with her hands in the pockets of her breeches.

* * *

Jack was hanging around the Swann's sitting room looking at the artifacts and other valuable things displayed around the house. The only person with him was Will, who had gotten tired of trying to keep Jack from breaking anything and ended up just relaxing on the couch. The two heard someone enter the house and looked to see Marine walking towards them and falling to the couch beside Will ungracefully. The two men looked at each other in silence before looking at the female pirate. 

"Where are Elizabeth and Carrie?" Will asked.

"Somewhere out there." Marine muttered softly. "Carrie was being friendly with a woman's kid and the woman immediately panicked and told Carrie to get away thinking that she was a pirate too." Jack raised an eyebrow in confusion while Will frowned. Between the two men it was obvious that only Will had an idea of what was happening.

"I don't get it. What's so special about a kid and his mother?" Jack asked. Marine sighed and looked out the window, watching the harbor move about with energy and activity. She didn't feel like answering Jack's question and decided to stay quiet. Jack either sensed that it wasn't the right time but didn't care or he had no idea about what Marine was feeling then because he pressed on. "What wrong with that? Don't tell me that Carrie is making a big deal out of something so little as that. Come on Marine, speak up." Marine gave a loud and heavy sigh as she looked back at Jack.

"No it isn't a big deal for you...or for me for that matter. But it is for her. She regards pirates very highly. She thinks they're heroes and that it would be a great thing to become a pirate. What she doesn't know, what she can't accept, is how bad life will always become if you're always getting into danger or into life-death situations." She said. "She thinks people should believe that as well and felt upset when these people told her that they hated pirates." Jack fell silent, having no idea how to answer that. He knew that making a humorous comment at the time would only get Marine to threaten him or beat him up seriously.

"It doesn't matter what others say though." Will said to no one in particular. "As long as you know what you're doing and are happy with it, then other people's opinion shouldn't have an effect in you."

"That's what I'm afraid of." Marine spoke so softly that the two men almost didn't hear it. "I don't want her to be encouraged to become a pirate. I don't want her getting hurt physically...and spiritually. It hasn't sinked in her how dangerous and intense pirating is. I'm confident that once she does, that she's going to get hurt even worse. But I also don't want to crush her spirit like a bug. It's just too harsh." Jack moved to sit on the arm of the couch by Marine's side and began to wave his hands around as he spoke.

"Pirating isn't all that bad..." When Marine gave him a strange look, he raised up his hands in defeat. "Okay so it's bad. But it doesn't necessarily have to mean that she's going to become one of us. Let her do whatever she wants. And when things go bad, live with it. It's a part of learning. And since you're there to guide her a little bit, I'm sure nothing too bad's going to happen to the lass." Will was pondering on what Jack said and when Marine looked at him, he gave a shrug.

"It makes sense. It's Jack, but it sounds sober enough to be true."

"Speaking of sober, I need rum." Jack was about to walk away from the sitting room when Marine spoke the dreaded words that made Jack want to run away from Elizabeth's house as fast as he could.

"I don't think they have rum." Marine watched with amusement as Jack pivoted around with one leg and looked at Marine with a horrified expression on his face.

"No rum?! What kind of horrible creatures live in a house with no rum?" He cried. Marine couldn't help but chuckle and smile at Jack as she watched him worry exaggeratedly over his problem. Will was equally amused and placed his arms behind his head casually.

"A lot of houses don't keep rum in their pantry. It's not really as important as water after all."

"What do you mean it's not important? Of course it's important! It's rum!" Jack argued. Then after a short while he paused and furrowed his brows in deep concentration. Then he widened his eyes and looked at Will. "And what about the wedding? Don't tell me..." Marine couldn't keep her laughter in anymore and threw her head back as she burst out in cheerful gales of laughter. Will put a hand to his mouth and was coughing horribly as he tried to hide his own laughter.

"I'm sorry to say this Jack, but there's no rum in the wedding. Only water, wine and tea would be served." Jack walked back to where he sat and plopped down on it with his arms crossed like a stubborn, disappointed child who had just heard that he could only get dessert after dinner.

"Lizzie better be glad I'm doing this for her...no rum! What has the world come to?..." He grumbled. Marine took in a deep breath and exhaled as the last of her laughter died down. She looked at Will and found herself laughing all over again. Will began to chuckle softly as he listened to Marine laugh. Jack wasn't very happy about their reactions and began to mutter softly to himself. Then he stood up with a frown on his face and began to walk away. With nothing to do and in fear that Jack would cause more trouble for them, Will stood up from the couch and followed after Jack out of the house. Marine didn't want to be alone in Elizabeth's house and decided to go after them as well.

"What are you planning on doing Jack?" Marine asked him. Jack turned around to face Marine with a strange look.

"Find myself a tavern that serves rum of course! And since we're headed there anyway, we might as well give the whelp one last chance to experience the freedom of being free from the chains of a wife. Especially if the wife is a woman like Elizabeth." Jack muttered the last sentence softly while he looked about as if afraid that Elizabeth would suddenly appear in front of him. Marine raised an eyebrow as she looked at Jack incredulously.

"You can't be serious! The only thing Will's going to get from this little celebration of yours is a hangover in the morning and a scolding from Elizabeth. The only comfort in that is that you'll get an even worse scolding from her." Will's face broke into an amused grin while Jack grimaced. Then his eyes lit up bright as he looked at her and pointed.

"And that is why you're coming with us. To keep us from getting a bit too ahead of ourselves." He said. Marine widened her eyes in surprise and was about to open her mouth to say no when Jack grabbed her arm and dragged her through the streets. She tried to struggle with him but Jack was stronger and was more determined that she was. Then she heard him mutter something about inviting Norrington to the little 'party' to make things even more interesting and was even more horrified than before. Will walked up to her side and leaned his head close to hers.

"Don't worry. I'm sure that it's not going to be that bad." He said optimistically. Marine sighed as she began moving in Jack's pace in defeat.

_Where's Elizabeth when you need her?_


	15. The Wedding

**AN:** I'm really sorry for the long delay. College is hard work you know! But have no fear, I have finally uploaded the recent chapter. Enjoy and read and review please!

* * *

_**"It's so romantic Vanessa! I'm so happy for the two of them." - Carrie Lockheart**_

**Chapter 15 - The Wedding**

The energetic rush of the people bustling about the streets doing their own business was nothing compared to the rush of emotions running through Elizabeth as she stood before the window and looked down at the people outside. She was still clad in her nightshift; her wedding gown lay on her bed. The maids and other young women were rushing about the room helping the bride prepare for the wedding an hour later. There were only two women who weren't helping and who were instead lounging around by Elizabeth's side. Carrie, because the other women felt it was impolite for a guest to do such things and liked her enough to respect her. Marine, because they were wary of the female pirate and didn't want to have anything to do with her. No one mentioned it word per word but Carrie sensed the dislike for pirates in the other women in the room. Either way, the two were finished with their own make-up and dresses and were keeping their friend company.

Elizabeth was pacing the room, biting her lip nervously. Once in a while she would stop and open her mouth to say something then decide not to and go on with what she was previously doing. Marine and Carrie stayed silent and watched their friend go about anxiously. Marine had gone through this, having been a part of the wedding of one of her co-workers in the comic making industry. She was going to let Elizabeth ponder through her own thoughts before she start bombarding the bride with her own. Carrie had no idea of this, on the other hand, and decided to be the good friend that she is.

"What are you doing, pacing about like a nervous wreck? It's your wedding day! You should be excited and happy." She told her. The bride turned to face Carrie with a worried expression on her face.

"I know I should be but what if Will suddenly doesn't want to marry me? I mean, the two of us are still very young and Will still has a lot to live for. And even if he does want to marry me what if something goes wrong during the wedding? What if it suddenly rains? What if the priest is late or can't make it? What if someone falls down, gets hurt or-"

"Elizabeth!" The firm and strong voice that called made Elizabeth stop and look at the person who spoke. Marine walked up to Elizabeth and placed her hands on her shoulders. She pressed on them hard as she spoke, insisting the other woman to understand her.

"I want you to take deep and slow breaths. I want you to relax and think of nothing but Will." Elizabeth closed her eyes and began doing as Marine told her to. "The man loves you as true as the sun rises up from the east. Nothing bad is going to happen during your wedding because everyone is here to make sure that it won't. Like hell I'll let something like wrong flower arrangements or wrong sized dresses keep this wedding from going on. I've gone through too much torture with those clothing pins to let this dress I'm wearing go to waste. And if things do get wrong, then we'll fix them like the normal human beings we are."

"If you could fight off cursed and not cursed pirates, escape the Dauntless in order to help Will during that battle at Isla de Muerta, and stand before the Commodore to save Jack Sparrow, then I'm sure you'll survive through your wedding." Carrie added with a smile. Elizabeth took another deep breath before opening her eyes and smiling at Marine and Carrie.

"Thank you so much, the both of you. I don't know what I'll do without the two of you by my side." Marine smiled and nudged Elizabeth's cheek lightly with the back of her finger.

"Don't start crying now Elizabeth. There's time for crying once you and Will say your "I do's". If you start now you'll ruin your make-up and make things even worse for your...helpers." She said, nodding at the chaos inside the room with her head. All three women looked at the mess and the noise that accumulated in the room and smiled at each other. A knock on the door barely interrupted everyone from what they were doing so Marine walked towards the door to open it. Norrington stood on the other side in very pressed and stylish uniform. Marine smirked at him as she looked at him.

"Turner wanted me to check up on Elizabeth. He is so nervous about this wedding that even Sparrow had to leave him because he couldn't take any more of him." He grumbled softly. Marine looked over her shoulder to where the bride was before smiling at him.

"She's doing fine. Just having the usual case of pre-wedding nervousness like Will probably is. Nice clothes. Such a shame you're not the Best Man anymore." She told him. Norrington gave an offhand shrug and fixed the wig on top of his head.

"Well it's not really that significant. I for one would not approve of Sparrow as the best man in the wedding but it is Elizabeth's wedding and she requested the pirate to take the role." He said. Marine gave a slight nod of the head with a knowing look at Norrington.

"And we all know that whatever Elizabeth wants, she gets. By the way, I think it was more of a threat than a request to Sparrow. You should get her to join the Navy. That would probably help you with your little pirate problems." Norrington could not help but smile at that. Then he realized too late that he was smiling and having a conversation with a pirate and frowned at that.

"Well if you will excuse me, I shall go back to Will and inform him of Elizabeth's current state." He gave a small bow before turning around and walking away. Marine watched him leave with a smirk on her face before closing the door and turning her attention back to the room. When she went back to where the other two were, she told them about how Norrington came and asked about Elizabeth.

"Will's just as worried about this as you are Elizabeth. It's pretty obvious how much the guy loves you." Carrie told her. Marine hid a smile on her face as she listened to the two talk about the upcoming wedding. She knew a hundred percent what Will was afraid of and the reason why he's acting the way he was.

_And after that little tease I did to him, it's a surprise that he isn't trying to kill me or Sparrow right now._

Marine had a big feeling that the reason Jack left Will to his own world of misery was to try get 'it' back...again. Otherwise, knowing Will, Elizabeth wasn't just going to beat the daylights out of her soon-to-be husband. She grimaced as she imagined how much pain she was going to suffer under the hands of the raging woman once she hears of what happened.

"Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned..." She muttered under her breath.

"What was that Marine?" The female pirate jumped slightly in surprise as she heard Elizabeth speak to her. She quickly looked at the young bride and gave her the biggest smile she could muster.

"Nothing! Nothing important! Just muttering gibberish." She told her. She looked around the room once before looking back at Elizabeth. "I'll be downstairs seeing if there's anything else that needs fixing. And of course I'll be checking up on our young and lovely groom."

"All right. See you later then." Marine gave a slight wave before walking towards the door and leaving the room as fast as she could. She took one deep breath before walking down the stairs of the Swann Mansion and moving towards the garden where the wedding was going to take place in. There were a lot of people who were already sitting on the chairs prepared, talking, whispering and laughing softly with each other as they waited for the wedding to begin. She saw Will standing by the altar in very nice garments that were made for him specially for this occasion. He was fiddling with his fingers, brushing back his hair every few minutes and looking around for something or someone. She walked over to him and saw his weary eyes.

"Are you all right Will?" She asked, placing a hand on his shoulder. The young blacksmith looked at her and gave her a bleak smile.

"Honestly, not really. What happened a few days ago is still driving me insane with worry. I asked-"

"Yes I know. Norrington told me that Sparrow left you in your own miserable world. I could make a few guesses by his simple move of leaving you." Will sighed and began looking around once more. Marine frowned and brought his attention back to her. "Listen Will, about what happened-"

"I know it's not your fault Marine. I'm not blaming you for what happened. I should have said no to that celebration in the first place. Or if I conceded to it, I shouldn't have been so drunk to make that senseless bet."

"Will, Sparrow spiked your drink when you only asked for water. I think that gives you an excuse for being horribly drunk." Will grimaced as he remembered the massive hangover he had the next day. That made him remember the fact that he had not reprimanded the pirate for what he did.

"It was a good thing you were there to keep us in check. If Elizabeth found out that we were at the tavern drinking rum and I made a bet with a drunken man because I was drunk as well..." Before Will could continue, people began stirring to life at the arc where the procession was going to go through. Marine and Will looked at it then at each other with slight dread. Marine took a deep breath and held the blacksmith's shoulders.

"Listen Will. I know this might seem hard right now, but please stay calm and don't give anything away to Elizabeth. There's still time for Sparrow to find it and get back here before the actual rite starts..." Will gave a small nod and swallowed the lump in his throat nervously. Marine felt a lump in her own throat and closed her eyes as she tried to calm herself down. Once she felt that she was more or less in control of her panic, she moved to where the procession was and began to line up together with the others. Elizabeth somehow had made a few adjustments so that she could become the Maid of Honor. Marine wasn't expecting that but was honored to do it for Elizabeth.

The organs began playing the opening song that would start the wedding. People moved their heads around to see the procession walk through the beautifully made arc on a clean and bright red carpet. Marine looked at it with a smile on her face. It was wrapped all around with lush, green vines and small but colorful roses that were glued randomly all over the arc. Once she heard the music's cue, she began to walk through the arc and towards the altar. Right before she stepped through, a hand grabbed hers and placed it on an arm. She could feel the smell of rum and feel the soft breath as someone whispered into her ear and played with the loose strands of her black hair.

"You look lovely in that dress love. But I bet you'd look even better without it." Marine's head swiveled quickly to the side to find teeth with gold glinting back at her, forming a grin. She looked back ahead of her and walked slowly and carefully, trying not to blow her head off at the man next to her while trying not to notice the sudden chills that came up her spine at the physical closeness of the two. The fact that he was cleaner and looked even more handsome without the dirt and grime all over his body didn't help matters any further. She was disappointed in seeing him in his usual, but much cleaner pirate clothes; she wanted to know what Jack looked like in a tuxedo or a suit. She shook her head slightly of those thoughts then leaned her head close to Jack's.

"Did you have to go with me? Governor Swann's probably back at the line looking like he's about to kill you for ruining the wedding." She murmured soft enough so only the two could hear it. Everyone else was awaiting the beautiful bride to take too much notice of them. Will stood with his back to them so he couldn't see them make their way towards him.

"I didn't ruin the wedding. Was just adding a touch of my own to it. Relax love, everything's all right." Jack replied just as softly, smiling at everyone as they walked.

"So did you find the man?"

"Aye, and it took me quite a time to get it back."

"It's your own fault for causing all this mess." Jack pressed hard on Marine's hand, making her slightly wince.

"If you had kept an eye on the whelp like I told you to, none of this would have happened." Marine narrowed her eyes slightly and pinched Jack's arm in retaliation.

"I would have if you helped me keep off all the drunken bastards who were trying to get me to go with them to their beds instead of flirting around with the whores."

"I wouldn't need to do so if you only told them off. You're Sharpshooter Marine. You ought to be capable of taking care of yourself."

"Well none of this would have happened if you didn't make Will go to that ridiculous party of yours in the first place!" She spat with irritation.

Before they could continue their heated argument, they had reached the end of the long red carpet. Marine moved left while Jack moved to the right, where Will was still waiting nervously. The rest of the procession went on without any problems to everyone's relief. Then the pianist began to play the main song of the wedding; the tune that meant the bride was coming. Elizabeth stood there, glowing and smiling brightly in her beautifully made white wedding dress. Her hair seemed to shine and shimmer with the sun as she walked along the red carpet together with her father Governor Swann. Will turned his head over his shoulder to take a quick glance and felt his heart leap out of his throat at the sight. Jack smiled and clapped Will's back gently.

"You're a lucky lad whelp. Please don't try to do anything stupid this time." Will jumped in surprise at the sudden gesture and the voice that spoke. He looked at his best man and felt his happiness fall slightly as he remembered his current problem.

"Jack! What happened? Did you...?" The pirate grinned as he stuffed his hand into the pockets of his pants and opened his palm to Will to reveal a thin, gold band with a red jewel set at the center. When Will saw the ring it took everything he had not to faint in relief.

"Everything's going perfectly well mate. Trust Captain Jack Sparrow to keep it that way."

* * *

It was a beautiful day and what better way to end it than with an equally beautiful night. The sky was clear of clouds and revealed tiny twinkling stars that brought light into Port Royal together with the full moon. The ballroom had been well prepared, with servants going around bearing trays of hour D' ourves. The center of the room was saved for those couples who wanted to dance with a quartet playing soft and classical songs in the background. Carrie and Marine were standing together with Norrington and Jack as they watched the two newly wed couple dance around the ballroom for the first time. The former woman was smiling brightly at Elizabeth and wiped a lone tear from the side of her eye. She looked at Marine and couldn't help but hug her tightly. 

"It's so romantic Vanessa! I'm so happy for the two of them." Marine winced as she felt air leave her lungs but still had the smile on her face as she pried Carrie's arms from her body.

"Yeah, it is. I'm sure the two of them are just as happy as you are for the success of the wedding a while ago." She told her, casting a quick glance at Jack who grinned back at her knowingly. Norrington raised an eyebrow at the two of them curiously but said nothing as he stood there together with them a bit awkwardly. Other guests of the wedding were trying to stay as far away from the group as possible with Jack and Marine in it. It had been like that ever since people saw the two of them walk through the arc towards the altar during the ceremony.

"I think I'll go find something other than water, tea and wine to drink." Jack mumbled as he made his way through the crowd. "Maybe Will knows where a secret stash of rum could be hiding in this mansion..." Marine rolled her eyes and shook her head in disbelief as Norrington watched Jack leave with wide, incredulous eyes. When he walked off, a man walked up to Carrie and asked her to dance. Carrie smiled and agreed as she and the man walked together to the dance floor. The remaining two people stood idly side by side not knowing what to say or do with each other. Marine watched the other people dance and glare spitefully at her and couldn't help but chuckle.

"What do you find so amusing?" Norrington asked her. Marine looked at him, surprised to find him still standing beside her for other reasons than chasing after her because she was a pirate. She smiled at him and looked back at all the people in the ballroom.

"I just feel entertained by how these people react to people like me. It's as if I'm the lion in a cage looking at all the deer and animals that lions eat"

"It's not your fault that they think you're a very dangerous, killing pirate." Norrington said sarcastically. "It entirely has nothing to do with you being one." Marine narrowed her eyes at Norrington and poked his chest with her finger.

"Why won't you shut up and learn when to act civil?! Look, if we were the damn bastards that you think pirates are supposed to be then we would have burned this whole town to the ground and killed every single person living on this blasted shore. We may be pirates, but we can also have honor and morals just like you do. You're the cruel people in this story; discriminating us for our occupation when it's your own fault that we fell into this line of work in the first place." Norrington narrowed his own eyes at her and was about to open his mouth to give a retort when Marine interrupted him.

"Don't play dumb with me Norrington. You of all people should know why people bother to become pirates. Not everyone became a pirate because they want to steal or kill. Especially not me, or my father, or Jack, or Will's father. You should learn to think before you open your mouth and insult someone for no reason." She turned around and walked away from the man, not wanting to listen to him lecture her on the topic. Norrington was going to open his mouth to ask where she was going when he thought better of it and closed his mouth. She wasn't going to ruin Elizabeth's and Will's wedding on purpose so he knew that wherever she was going, it won't be to do something dangerous. He sighed and looked at the rest of the crowd as the previous song ended. Carrie came walking back to where Norrington was and frowned when she didn't see Marine anywhere.

"Where's Vanessa?" Norrington raised an eyebrow at her, wondering why she still insisted on calling Marine, Vanessa. He said nothing about it and looked at the direction where Marine had walked off a few minutes ago.

"She's decided to find something else to do." He muttered. Carrie raised an eyebrow suspiciously before hearing the next some played out and smiled at Norrington.

"Would you like to dance? If you don't start moving, your legs might become too stiff for you to walk." She teased. Norrington gave in and let himself be led to the dance floor by the woman. They stopped and faced each other and made polite bows to each other as the introduction to the song was half-way done. Then after holding each other at the proper distance, they began to sway with the music. Neither of them spoke as they danced around together with the other guests. Carrie had a pondering look on her face as she looked at Norrington.

"You made her mad didn't you?" She murmured softly. Norrington stiffened at the sudden accusation but made no move to ask or to reply. He knew what Carrie was talking about and didn't feel like broadening the topic. Carrie on the other hand, had other ideas on that matter. "Was it you insulting her piracy? Or maybe you insulted her as a whole being because of her piracy. I wouldn't be surprised if you had."

"It's none of your business Miss Lockheart."

"Of course it is! You insulted Jack, who would have left you to die if he was the cruel, heartless pirate you think him to be. And most important of all, you insulted my best friend!" Despite the fight, Carrie and Norrington continued to dance around in a circle with the rest of the guests. No one in that room would have noticed the look of irritation and hate that the two gave each other until they saw the heat of fire swimming in their eyes. "My best friend; the woman I've known all my life. How long have you known her or Jack, Norrington? Less than a year? Less than half-a year even?"

"It doesn't matter how long I've known them. What matters is what they have done in their lives. And all I've seen them do is lie, cheat and steal; not the kind of traits I would see in my closest friends."

"Those aren't the only traits they have."

"Then perhaps they should show me those other traits of theirs if they want me to think of them otherwise."

"They've been doing that the whole time. You're the one who wouldn't see what's in front of you." Norrington said nothing else as he let her twirl around under his hand. He said nothing even as they crossed halfway down the floor. He was at a loss for words yet he didn't want to believe the young woman he was dancing with. Carrie spoke again, answering her own silent question. "You don't want to admit it because if you did, then you'd feel as if you betrayed the Navy. And knowing you, that doesn't sit quite well with your conscience. But tell me Norrington, is it truly better to stay true to something you don't believe in and keep the honor of that loyalty, or to do the thing that you think is right even if you have to betray the Navy to do it?"

Carrie didn't wait for Norrington to answer the question because she knew that he couldn't answer it then. The two dancers fell silent with the remaining minutes of the song and bowed courteously when it was over. They looked at each other awkwardly as the others clapped and prepared for the next song. But before the next song could begin, the sound of loud boots charging into the room reached everyone's ears and stilled their peaceful merry-making. Norrington and Carrie looked towards the entrance and watched as men in red uniforms crossed the room and circled everyone with their rifles at their hands. Norrington stepped away from Carrie and walked up to one of the guards with irritation. He never recalled calling them to interrupt the wedding.

"What is the meaning of this? I did not give you orders to come here tonight." He told them in a scolding tone. "Fall back at once!" None of the guards moved at his command. Norrington narrowed his eyes at them and was about to repeat his command when a voice cut through the silent air like a sharp blade.

"None of them will listen to you, no matter how hard you command them." Governor Swann came running up to Norrington's side and looked at the man who spoke. He was walking calmly towards them with his hands behind his back.

"I demand to know what on earth is going on here! How dare you interrupt my daughter's wedding." Governor Swann said angrily. The man took a parchment from the inside of his clothes and held it out to Governor Swann as he spoke to the whole room.

"I am here under the direct orders of the new Commodore to apprehend the three pirates who have been welcomed here like honored guests. Former Commodore James Norrington, Mr. William Turner and Miss Elizabeth Swann shall be captured along with them for openly assisting them in their piracy."

"That's Mrs. Turner to you!" Elizabeth cried angrily. Carrie paled as she listened to the new Commodore's announcement and immediately ran through the confused crowd, looking for Marine and Jack.

* * *

Marine moved past people and away from Norrington as fast as she could manage in her dress and high-heels, ignoring the disgusted looks of hate that were aimed at her. She went out of the balcony into the fresh air of the night and took a deep breath gratefully as if she had been underwater for too long. She closed her eyes, took in another deep breath, and thanked the gods that Elizabeth didn't force a corset on her when she refused to wear one. 

She looked up at the stars and gave a weary sigh. She remembered a time when all she had to worry about were comic deadlines, weekly trips to the grocery, and the occasional fashion emergency when people invited her to awards, conventions and the like. It was hard to believe that now she was a dangerous pirate fighting for her life against her own clone who wanted to take her body to become a complete entity.

"Has it been that long since I've lived a life without the killing, the fighting and the risks?" She muttered to herself. She knew the answer was no; it has only been at least two months since she came to Port Royal in the flesh for the first time. But it already felt like she has lived the life of a pirate from birth. The sound of the doors to the balcony opening reached her ears and a smile graced her lips as she heard steps coming closer towards her. She said nothing as the newcomer walked beside her and leaned on the railings with her. A hand nudged her, and she looked to the side to find a wine glass being held out to her. She couldn't help but chuckle and smile wider at the frowning, disappointed face.

"Couldn't find the secret stash?" She made it sound like a question but she knew the answer to it even before she asked. Jack made a soft grunt and brought back the glass to himself.

"If you don't want the wine then all you have to do is say it." Marine turned and touched the hand that held the wine. She took the glass from Jack and smiled at him gratefully.

"Thanks. I needed it." Marine turned back beyond the rails and gazed back up at the black sky twinkling with bright stars. She sipped a bit of the wine and sighed as she felt the liquid go down her throat and warm her body a little bit. Jack followed her movement but made a face as he swallowed the wine he had sipped.

"I will never understand people and their taste in wine." He murmured. "Rum tastes so much better than this mediocre drink." Marine chuckled and shook her head from side to side. Jack smiled back at her then looked up at the sky as well.

"Couldn't take the atmosphere anymore? Had enough of being a Miss High Classed Lass?" Marine raised an eyebrow at him then sighed in defeat.

"You could say that. I'm not really into these kinds of parties even when I was back at my own world." She explained. "No matter how many times I went to one of these, I could never feel comfortable. I guess the pirate in me has been here inside me all this time." She added jokingly. Jack grinned at her as he took her glass and set it down on the ground with his.

"You know, just because we pirates are known to be rugged, disgusting and uncourteous doesn't mean that all pirates are." He stood in front of her and made a very polite bow that surprised Marine. "Would the lovely Miss Nelee like to have this dance with a rotten pirate such as myself?" He asked. They could hear the start of a song from the inside clearly. Marine smiled at Jack and made a curtsy at him.

"I would be delighted to Mr. Sparrow." He placed one hand on her waist and took one of Marine's hand in the other while Marine placed her free hand on Jack's shoulder. Together they began to sway and dance to the tune that was being played inside. Jack was a good dancer and made Marine laugh as he twirled her around in a very exaggerated manner. Marine played along and even got Jack to twirl under her arm for a good laugh. They were enjoying the dance so much that they didn't notice shadows lurking closer and closer to the mansion.

"I didn't know you could dance. Who taught you how to do it? Your father?" She asked as they continued to circle around the balcony. Jack winced and looked away from her eyes.

"Aye. He was the one who taught me almost everything there is to know in life." He mumbled softly. Marine widened her eyes and remembered that it was a touchy subject in Jack's life. She frowned and was about to apologize to him when he smiled at her. "It's nothing, don't worry. He only taught me the basics though...I learned most of what I know from going around the world." He told her. "Does everyone in your world know how to dance?"

"I see...The definition of 'dance' has become too relative to mean the dance we're doing right now. There have been a lot of new styles of dancing that came out as the years passed by. But no, not everyone knows how to dance. Some people have what you call two left feet. I've danced with one before and had to put ice packs on my feet from the pain of it." She said and laughed as she remembered that moment. Jack laughed along with her and suddenly made her dip close to the ground. Marine gave a short scream of surprise and wrapped her arms around Jack's neck instinctively.

"What the hell are you doing?! Don't drop me!" She cried. Jack laughed as he looked down at her.

"Don't worry love. Your legs shall be safe and pain-free tonight; contrary to what others believe, I don't have two left feet." He said. Marine relaxed a bit but didn't loosen her hold on Jack as he pulled her back into an upright position. "And the lack of rum in this blasted party helped with that." He added with a frown. Marine laughed again and made Jack grin back.

"Then I'll make sure to thank Elizabeth and Will for not providing you two drunken left legs for tonight." They began to dance once more, oblivious to the people inside the mansion. As the song slowly came to an end, Marine tripped on her dress and fell forward. If it wasn't for Jack, she would have hit the ground.

"Careful Maria. Wouldn't want to see your lovely little bottom squashed." He teased. Marine looked up at Jack and was about to give an angry retort when she realized how close their faces were. She widened her eyes and began to feel a blush coming to her cheeks as she stared at Jack, who stared back at her and didn't let her go even if she was already balanced. All angry thoughts flew away from Marine's head and what came out of her mouth was a stutter.

"Uh...t-thanks. For not letting me fall." She mumbled. Jack didn't answer her; just placed a hand to her chin and tilted it up. Then he began to bend lower to her face. Marine could feel her heart pounding fast and her hands shaking slightly at her sides as she stood there stunned. She wanted to step back from Jack and avoid what was about to happen but at the same time she wanted it to happen. She could feel everything inside her turning upside-down as she tried to think of what to do; whether to kiss him back or to push away. She pressed her lips together and bit the inside of her cheek. Her thoughts were overwhelming her with confusing emotions. Her legs fought to move and not to move at the same time. She wondered if she was going to faint or die from the overload of emotions running through her. Jack sensed the battle within her and smiled.

"You don't need to fight it if you really want this." He spoke softly. That made Marine's heart pound 10 times faster than before.

_That would have been helpful advice if I knew what I wanted!_ She could already feel his breath on her face, sense the presence of his lips so close to hers. She closed her eyes tight and waited for the feel of his lips on hers when she heard the snap of a twig somewhere in the Swann's garden. With her attentions mixed up, she was able to pick up the soft sound in the silence of the night. The atmoshpere she was in dispersed completely and she whirled around to look for the source of the sound suspiciously.

"Did you hear that?" She whispered.

"Hear what? I didn't hear anything." Jack muttered as he looked at the direction Marine was facing. "It must have been your imagination." Marine stepped away from Jack's arms and narrowed her eyes at the darkness. She thought it unfortunate that the moon was obscured by the clouds that moment, giving her barely any light to see with.

"No, it's not my imagination. There's someone out there." She told him. "We better go inside and tell the others." She looked at Jack who sighed and moved to the door first. Before any of them could open it, someone from the inside opened it hard. Marine and Jack took steps back in surprise as they saw Carrie appear from the inside looking panicked and flushed.

"Vanessa! Jack! Where the hell have you two been?! I have been looking all over for you."

"What's wrong Carrie?" Marine asked. Before Carrie could answer, they all heard more sounds from the garden and saw more men in red uniforms headed their way. Jack stepped in front of Marine and Carrie and took out his sword from its sheath.

"You two get inside and get dressed quickly. If we're to escape our present predicament we're going to run without you two wearing long and heavy gowns." Sounds of fighting began to rise from the inside mixed in with the sound of people screaming and running away. Marine was about to push Carrie inside when three more guards came out of the door. The female pirate was about to take out her own short sword when she remembered that she was in a dress and that her weapons were in the rooms upstairs. She cursed inwardly and backed away from the men who were walking towards them with their rifles aimed at all three.


	16. Cheating Death

AN: Ahhhhh!! What a month this has been! I've been to busy with everything in college that I couldn't find the time to continue the fic. On the bright side, it's almost time for vacation and the workload has lessened. So now I have me time, and my writing time Hope you enjoy this next chapter. R & R please!

* * *

"Say goodbye to your pirate friend and start repenting on your sins. May God be merciful to you all." - The new Commodore

Chapter 16 - Cheating Death

Jack had assumed that Marine and Carrie had already ran inside while he backed away from the men with the rifles slowly. He knew that there was no chance for him to simply run and escape while the loaded guns were pointed right at him. He only hoped that everyone would be ready when it was time to run. He gave an innocent, lopsided grin to the men as he raised his hands up in defense.

"Now, now, can't we all talk about this like good, civilized men?" He asked. "There's no need for blood to be shed tonight now is there? We're in the middle of a wedding after all!" The sound of an 'oomph' reached his ears as he bumped into something behind him. He looked over his shoulder and narrowed his eyes in irritation at the two women behind him.

"Didn't I tell you to run inside?"

"We'd love to escape all these rifles Sparrow, but unfortunately there are things that are blocking our way." Marine replied as she and Carrie faced the other group of guards who had come in from inside the mansion. Jack looked beyond the two ladies and saw what they saw. He gave a weary sigh and looked back in front of him.

"Oh bugger."

"What are we going to do now?" Carrie asked her best friend worriedly. Marine gritted her teeth and clenched her hands into tight fists. Then she widened her eyes in surprise and pointed at something above them.

"Look! It's more of our pirate friends trying to save us!" She shouted. Immediately all rifles pointed upwards as guards peered through the darkness. Marine grabbed Carrie's and Jack's hand and charged at the guards blocking their way inside the house. They knocked down the guards and rushed inside as the ones outside realized what had happened and aimed their rifles at the three. Jack pulled hard at Marine's hand and dragged her to the side along with Carrie as they heard bullets fly past them. Carrie stood up and saw Will and Norrington fighting guards side by side. Jack grumbled as he stood up and tightened his hold on the hilt of his sword. Marine stood up and didn't have to wait for Jack's order. She grabbed the other woman's hand and began dragging her through the chaos and the fighting.

"Damn these clothes! I knew there was a reason why I hated wearing dresses." Marine muttered as she lifted up the ends of her dress with one hand and ran as fast as she could together with Carrie. Marine saw guards standing to one side with their rifles aimed at them and dragged Carrie to the floor behind one of the overturned tables. Gunshots rang in their ears and echoed in their heads as they placed hands above their heads for cover. When the shooting had stopped, the two women stood up and continued to run. Some of the guards reloaded their rifles while others chased after them. Marine pushed Carrie ahead of the door that led out to the hallways and turned around just in time to dodge a sword that would have sliced her back.

"Vanessa!"

"Go! I'll follow!" Marine shouted. Carrie nodded and ran as fast as she could through the hallways towards the stairs that led to the second floor. Marine faced the man in front of her and raised her fists in front of her defensively.

"I might not have any weapons with me but I can still fight!" She said. The guard in front of her said nothing as he gripped the hilt of his sword and charged at her. But he lost his balance as someone kicked him from behind. Marine moved to the side, evading the guard as he fell forward and looked in front of her to see Will looking at her worriedly.

"Where's Carrie?" He asked.

"She's headed for our rooms to change. Elizabeth?"

"The same. You better go on too. We'll hold them down here for as long as we can." Will told her. Marine nodded and began running through the hallways as she heard the sound of more fighting from behind. She heard the sound of boot steps running towards her and cursed. She looked around her and felt an idea come to mind as she saw a pair of the armored knights standing in display on both sides leading to the stairs. She heard the rip of cloth as she looked back and saw that one of the guards had tried to slash her back. She stopped running for a few seconds to kick the side of the guards' head. Then she ran after Carrie who was already half-way to the stairs while more guards chased after them. Carrie began to go up the stairs in two steps at a time as fast as she could and looked back to see Marine pushing the two armored knights to the ground. The two women could feel their heads ringing with pain as the sound of metal crashing loudly against metal echoed in the hallway.

Even the guards were caught off guard as they pressed their hands to their ears to block out the sound as much as they could. Marine used this opportunity to grab Carrie's hand and pull her further up the stairs together with her. Both women placed only one hand to one ear as they ran and felt dizzy with the ringing aftereffect of the crash. As they reached the top Marine looked back and smirked when she saw the guards trying to move the armored knights that were blocking their way up the stairs. Carrie went to their rooms first and went in to find Elizabeth about to leave. She stood back with surprise and relief on her face.

"Marine! Carrie! Thank goodness you two are alright." She hugged both women and pulled them back into the room. "I was about to go look for the two of you. Your clothes are already here. Your weapons are by your clothes Marine." The female pirate made her way to the bed where her clothes lay and shamelessly undressed right in front of Carrie and Elizabeth. Carrie followed Marine as she grabbed her own clothes by the chair. Elizabeth turned a slight tinge of red and looked at the two women strangely.

"It seems as if you two are used to undressing in front of each other." She said. Marine looked at Elizabeth as she put on her shirt.

"This isn't the time for propriety Liz. Those guards downstairs are not going to stay there for as long as we want them to." She placed her belt around her waist and fastened it securely then grabbed her sheath and placed it inside her blue vest. After a second thought she took it out, unsheathed her short sword then put the empty sheath back inside. She looked at the other two women and nodded when she was sure they were ready. She moved first, placed her hand on the doorknob and turned it open. The three women stepped out and saw that the guards were making their way up. Marine moved in front of them with her sword raised in front.

"We can't go through here there's way too many people to get past. You two find a way to escape while I deal with these guys. I don't care how you do it, just go!" Carrie was about to open her mouth and protest when Elizabeth did it for her.

"We're not leaving you or the others behind!"

"Stop trying to act like you can help by staying here because you can't!" Marine snapped. "If you don't go we're all going to be sent to the gallows. It's better that at least one of us manages to get away from the guards rather than let them capture us all easily. That way there's someone who can try and get us out of this mess. So for christ sakes just go already!" She raised her sword as one of the guards charged at her. She slashed downwards and pushed the sword away from her. She looked over her shoulder and sighed when she saw Carrie and Elizabeth running. She looked back at the guard she was fighting with and blocked another attack he made. Their swords were against each other and the two fought to push the other away. Marine suddenly moved back, causing him to lose balance. As he fell forward, she lifted her knee up and connected it to his face. The guard fell back from the top of the stairs and made the other guards who were behind him fall with him.

As they fell down to the ground more guards arrived. Marine cursed and lunged into the room she had went out of as gunshots from rifles gave a loud bang. Vases shattered and holes were shot into the walls as Marine pressed herself against the wall. She could hear the guards scuffling about as they tried to go up the stairs again. When Marine went out of the room once more she saw one already headed for her with his sword. She raised her own and began to parry with the guard. She noticed that the stairs had been cleared and saw a guard holding a rifle a bit too late. She couldn't escape the shot that came from the guard and gave a short cry as she felt a burning pain pass through her shoulder. The guard who had been fighting with her brought down the hilt of his sword on her head and sent her crashing to the ground.

* * *

A groan escaped Marine's mouth as she slowly went out of her black haze. Her head felt like it was being run over by a bulldozer again and again. Nothing was trying to blind her or give her more pain so she assumed that it was still night. She tried to get up but her strength failed her and kept her where she lay. As she took a deep breath, a slight pain on her shoulder made her gasp and truly woke her up. She widened her eyes as memories of what happened earlier came back to her. 

"Marine? Are you alright?" She moved her head to the side and saw Elizabeth and Carrie looking at her worriedly behind a set of steel bars. Either they were caught while they were running from the guards or had tried to save her then got caught in the end. She was in too much pain to bother asking them about it. She moved her head to the other side and saw Jack and Norrington behind another set of bars. Norrington was probably furious at the thought that he had to share a cell with Jack Sparrow. When she stared straight ahead she found herself staring up at Will who had come to her side when he found out that she was awake. She closed her eyes and felt her headache grow worse.

"How long have we been here?" She murmured. Her voice felt dry and it was hard to speak clearly. But Will heard her and answered.

"Long enough. It's almost dawn. Are you alright Marine?"

"I have a huge headache. I just lost a couple of ounces of blood. I'm inside the prison cell. And I'm going to be hanged to death soon. Mostly I feel like crap but other than that I feel perfectly fine." She mumbled. Jack couldn't help but chuckle as he moved away from the bars and leaned against the wall casually. Even Carrie gave a small sigh of half-relief as she heard her friend's voice.

"If she can complain and be sarcastic like that then she's all right." Jack said. Marine tried to sit up once more but still couldn't do it. Will helped her up and made her use the wall to support herself. She groaned again and pressed a hand to her shoulder where she felt bandages wrapped up. She looked at Will in question and was about to voice it out when he answered.

"They took out the bullet from your body and bandaged you up. But they said that since they were going to kill you soon that you didn't need proper medical service." He explained. "You're going to be the first one to be hanged Marine." Marine managed a hoarse laugh.

"How smart of them. Since I was the first one to escape from prison before, they decided to strike me out before anyone else could escape."

"But that's not fair! You didn't escape then. You were brought back to our world." Carrie argued. Marine shrugged in reply. "What are we going to do guys? We can't let them kill us all now!"

"And what do you propose Miss Lockheart?" Norrington asked. "That we somehow blow down these cells and run to the docks unseen and unheard by anyone?"

"It's better than staying here, doing nothing and waiting for our deaths to arrive." Carrie retorted angrily.

"Well by all means go ahead Miss Lockheart. If that is the best that one of your stature can think of then I won't stop you from acting foolish. But do not involve me in whatever it is that you are planning."

"As if a former Commodore would have any use for us." Jack pointed out with a grin. "After all, without your funny, white-powdered wig, your shiny new uniform and cutlass as well as your army of 'well trained' Navy guards, you're just as bad as the whelp. You're not a eunuch too are you?"

"Will you guys shut it?!" Marine interrupted while rubbing her forehead with a grimace. "You're not helping things. First thing's first; how long do we have before I get called for the hanging?" She asked.

"A few hours if you're lucky. You'll be hanged at dawn." Norrington said. Marine groaned again, both in pain and in frustration.

"There's no time to think up of a good escape plan now. Either I just go there and die or by some miracle someone decides to save my sorry butt out there." Somehow the thought that she was going to die now didn't suit her. She preferred to die fighting or to die a natural death rather than die pathetically with hundreds of townspeople watching her like some source of entertainment. She sensed Carrie and Elizabeth's distress, Will's and Norrington's resignment and Jack's indifference. Among the three feelings she hated distress the most.

"It's no use panicking now. If we're going to get out of this mess panic is the last thing we should be doing." Marine muttered. Before she could go on and lift the spirits of the two other women the sound of footsteps reached their ears. Everyone fell silent as they saw a man with a stylish uniform and a white, powdered wig on top of his head go down the stairs and stop to regard them all with contempt. Beside him stood a guard Marine thought she'd never see again. It was Norrington's second man from the first movie, Gilette.

"So the female wretch has awakened has she? A pity. You should have stayed asleep while we hang you to death. It would probably ease the pain you'll be suffering in." The new Commodore said.

"Dying in my sleep doesn't suit me. It's the coward's way of running away from his death." She replied softly. "It's probably your way of dying since you thought of it first." The Commodore simply laughed at her as he ordered Gilette to open the cell with a wave of his hand.

"It's amazing how you still have the strength to talk back. Today's first hanging shall be very interesting with your seemingly witty comebacks. It shall be satisfying to see the spirit and fire within you sapped out with one swing of the lever." Marine narrowed her eyes at the Commodore as Gilette entered and grabbed her arm firmly after clasping irons on her wrists. Will stayed back and gritted his teeth in anger while Gilette pulled Marine up from the ground forcefully. Marine winced and felt everything spin fast as she stood up. The pain that coursed through her injured shoulder burned intensely, making her give off a soft hiss. The man ignored her pains and began dragging her out of the cell. Once they were out the Commodore slammed the door in front of Will's face with a loud clang and a satisfied smirk. Then he regarded everyone and crossed his arms.

"Say goodbye to your pirate friend and start repenting on your sins. May God be merciful to you all." He turned around and nodded to Gilette as he walked back up the stairs. The other man pushed Marine forward and led her behind the Commodore's form. Marine looked over her shoulder at everyone who gazed at her worriedly and gave a small sad smile. As she went up, the last face she saw before the prison cells disappeared from her sight was Jack's pensive and quiet face.

The sky was slowly glowing a reddish, orange color as Marine went out into the town. She saw that guards were standing to one side, probably to escort her and the Commodore to the gallows. She wanted to stay calm and show everyone that she wasn't afraid but she was terrified of what was going to happen to her. She hated the fact that she was going to know and wait for her own death. That was why she hated dying this way. The sound of the low drums and their quick, trance-like rhythm was getting to her nerves as she was led through the middle, where a large crowd was forming to see her get hanged. She grimaced as rotten vegetables and angry curses were thrown at her angrily.

"Monsters!"

"You filthy things don't deserve to live!"

"Let God punish you now for everything you've done pirate!"

"Here's for ruining our lives!" One of the tomatoes that had been thrown at her fell on top of her head; its juices running down her face like light-colored blood. The walk through the crowd was both humiliating and agonizingly long for her.

She stepped up onto the stage and stood facing everyone with an emotionless face. The man in charge of that day's hanging placed a noose around her neck while a man with a powdered wig stepped up to her side and began to dictate all the crimes she was accused of. Marine ignored his droning voice as she looked at Governor Swann, who looked just as worried as the others had been in the cells. She felt sorry for him for bringing his daughter into the mess she and the others were in now.

"...And for these crimes you have been sentenced to be, on this day, hung by the neck until dead. May God have mercy on your soul." The man said at last, rolling back the parchment he had read from. Marine felt the noose around her neck tighten. Her throat could feel the rough surface of the rope as she stood there listening to the drum continuously beat its deathly note. She looked at everyone's eyes, looking at them look back at her apathetically. She closed her eyes and felt the man walk down the stage. The other moved to the lever and placed his hand on it.

"A pirate's life for me..." Marine gritted her teeth and braced herself for the inevitable fate she was going to fall into when all of a sudden she heard someone's voice in her ear.

"What makes you think that I'm going to let you die like this hm? I won't let you run away from me that easily." Marine was about to turn her head around and see who it was that spoke when all of a sudden the lever was pulled and she felt herself falling down into the trapdoor. Before she could scream from both fright and surprise, she knocked her head on the hard ground and saw stars flashing before her eyes. Pain erupted from her head and she groaned as she rolled onto her back and looked up at the open trapdoor in shock.

"What the hell...?" Her eyes caught sight of where the noose was supposed to be and realized that it wasn't tied properly and firmly to the post.

"The pirate has escaped! After her!" Marine struggled to stand up from her position and took off the noose around her neck gratefully. Then she began to run as fast as she could, away from the guards who were chasing after her. Sounds of screams and panic ran through the crowd as they tried to run away from the gallows. Marine rushed into the crowd and hid among the people who barely registered that she was there with them. The guards couldn't shoot or do much while they looked for any sign of Marine. The female pirate made her way through the messy crowd towards the prison cells where she knew the others were still held in. Her legs were screaming at her to stop but she couldn't; as soon as she stopped she would not have the strength to go on. She had to save Jack and the others first before she could relax. Blood began dripping down her arm as she moved but she didn't take too much notice in this. The only thing that ran through her head was to help everyone escape.

Her breathing was short, loud and ragged as she went down the stairs. She didn't care about keeping her presence hidden from the two guards who were keeping an eye on the prisoners. Once they saw Marine go down they stood up and unsheathed their swords. Marine used her body and pushed one against the cell with a loud clang. Elizabeth and Carrie got a hold of him and knocked him unconscious as Marine moved away from the other guard who glared at her. She stood there completely exhausted and walked backwards as the guard moved towards her. With a loud cry, the guard made a lunge at her with his sword. She moved to the side and let the sword scratch the wall behind her. She raised her hands in the air and threw them down at the man's head, making sure that the irons cuffed to her wrists connected hard.

Marine fell down to the ground together with the guard. She felt like every limb in her body was tied up with weights. Her calves screamed and burned in pain after all that running. Her head swam in dizzying circles and made her vision blurry and unclear. She could hardly make out everyone's voices as they called her name repeatedly. She placed her hands on the floor and forced herself to get up. Her whole body shook with weariness but she still forced herself to stand up. The guards were not idiots; they would be headed to the prison cells soon and everyone will be dead if she doesn't get them out soon. Her legs could barely keep her up as she wobbled and swayed towards a screw that was nailed to the wall. A ring of keys lay there. She took it in her hand but before she could pass it to someone, she felt the last of her strength leave her and sent her falling to the ground.

* * *

"Marine!" Elizabeth cried worriedly at the same time Carrie shouted, "Vanessa!". They willed for Marine's body to move again but it didn't. Jack moved closer to the steel bars and saw the key in Marine's bloodied hand. It was not close, but it was probably close enough to reach out and grab. He looked at Norrington and hurriedly motioned for him to come closer. Norrington frowned but did as Jack asked. They were both in a cell and any idea, even from someone like Jack, was worth trying. 

"What is it Sparrow?" Norrington asked him. Jack looked at him then gestured to the key.

"Your arm is longer than mine. Stick your hand through those bars and try to get the key in her hand." Norrington said nothing but did as Jack suggested and began to reach out for the key. He was close to it but his fingers barely grazed the metal ring. He gritted his teeth and pushed himself closer to the bars and strained his arm as much as he could. Will, Elizabeth and Carrie watched Norrington worriedly and anxiously as he struggled to get the key from Marine's hand. Jack had had enough of the waiting and unbuckled his belt to everyone's surprise. Even Norrington stopped to stare incredulously at Jack.

"What on earth are you trying to do Sparrow?!" Jack ignored him as he took out his belt and handed it to Norrington.

"Use it to get the bloody key. Now hurry up! Bloody guards will come here if you don't move quicker!" He said impatiently, his hands making a shooing gesture at Norrington. The former Commodore suppressed a sigh from coming out of his lips and began to reach for the key once more with the belt. After a few more tries, Norrington finally got hold of the key. At the same time, sounds of people coming down the stairs reached their ears. Jack snatched the keys from Norrington's hand and began to unlock the door to their cell hurriedly. Everyone else could do nothing but stand there and await the inevitable meeting that was to come. The sound of a click reached Jack's ears and he eagerly opened the door to his cell just as the first of the guards came down and saw Jack walking out.

"Get him!" One of the guards shouted. Jack tossed the key to Norrington and rushed to get his cutlass. He turned to face the guards and began to attack them. He moved in front of Marine who was still lying on the ground and cursed as he found more and more guards headed their way. Norrington had rushed to the other cells and opened them as quickly as he could. Once he had unlocked everyone's cells both he and Will rushed to get their weapons and aided Jack in keeping the guards away. Elizabeth went to Marine and moved her from harm's way while Carrie took the rest of the weapons that were still lying there.

"There's no other way out! We're going to have to charge through them." Norrington said.

"Jack! The table! We can use that." Will shouted. Jack moved to let Will and Norrington hold their ground while he rushed to get the table. Carrie moved towards Jack and helped him carry the heavy table. Then together they made their way towards the stairs and pushed against the guards as much as they could. The other two men stopped fighting to grab the edge of the table and help in pushing it forward. Some of the guards fell to the ground immediately while others flipped over the table to their side then fell behind them. Once the guards realized what Jack and the others were doing they began to move back and up the stairs. But those who were at the top still didn't know what was happening and caused those in the middle to fall down and crash onto each other.

Jack gave a slight jump in surprise as a bullet hit the edge of the table and chipped off a bit of the wood. Carrie screamed in surprise as another came flying at them. They looked up and saw guards at the top of the stairs, aiming rifles at them. Jack grabbed Carrie's shoulder and pulled her back just as another bullet was shot.

"Step aside Carrie! We'll handle this." Jack told her. Carrie narrowed her eyes and was about to open her mouth in protest when Jack, Will and Norrington walked forward faster. Elizabeth came up to Carrie with one arm around the unconscious female pirate and looked at her worriedly.

"Are you alright?"

"I'm fine." Carrie grumbled. "Here let me help you." She went to Marine's other side and placed one arm around her. Together she and Elizabeth supported the female pirate and followed the men as they went further up the stairs. They used the table as their shield as more bullets and gunshots came their way. Most of the guards quickly moved away from the entrance as the table pushed them up. The men bearing rifles stepped a few meters back as the prisoners came up from the dungeons then aimed their rifles at them. Jack looked at Will and Norrington who both had knowing looks on their faces.

"At the count of three. 1...2...3!" Jack, Will and Norrington threw the table towards the guards as hard as they could and began knocking back the guards who were standing at one side with their swords. There was a loud crash as the guards with the rifles failed to dodge the wooden furniture and fell against each other under the heavy table. Carrie and Elizabeth continued to carry Marine and ran after Jack and the others as they cut a path through the Royal Navy. Everyone ran quickly through the streets, pushing past crowds of people who wondered what was going on. They could hear boot steps running after them from behind and didn't have to look back to see who. Will was the first one to catch sight of the docks and was more than relieved to see the open water. He looked at Jack who was running beside him.

"How are we going to get to the Black Pearl without being shot at by the guards?" He asked him.

"Shut up and give me a moment to think!" Jack said impatiently. They reached the docks a few minutes earlier than the guards, giving them at least a few moments to catch their breaths. Jack's brain was working in overdrive as he thought of ways to get out of the mess they were in. If Marine was in better condition it wouldn't have been that hard to do with her skills in throwing daggers at targets. He cursed his fate and looked around to assess his surroundings. Then he widened them in surprise as he caught a quick glimpse of a dark figure in the shadows. At the same time he could hear his name being called, giving him no time to think of what he had seen.

"Jack! Look!" Jack turned his head to where Carrie was pointing at and felt relief flood through his whole body. The Black Pearl was quickly making its way to the docks, with Gibbs, Cornelius and Jones standing at the bow and looking at them worriedly.

"Captain!"

"Gibbs! You certainly have a knack for appearing at the perfect moment!" Jack cried back with a grin. "I have a brilliant plan! Prepare the canons quickly."

"That will not be necessary." Norrington said coldly as he took out his sword and aimed it at Jack. Everyone else stared at him in shock and disbelief.

"Norrington!" Carrie and Elizabeth were about to step forward when Will held a hand in front of them and shook his head. The two women frowned but didn't go any further. They stood there and looked at Jack worriedly. Will looked at the other two men as well only he looked at them warily, ready to move in case something were to happen.

"And what, pray tell, do you expect to do now?" Jack asked him nonchalantly as he narrowed his eyes at Norrington. He was unperturbed by the fact that he would be pierced to death if he moved. "Have you forgotten that they're after you for assisting pirates in the first place? If they catch me they'll catch you as well."

"If I assist them in keeping you from escaping then I could care less if they punished me or robbed me of my position. I would accept anything but being hanged to death like a pirate. I won't go down the way you do and I certainly won't stoop so low as to become one of you! I won't allow you to risk the lives of the citizens of Port Royal for your selfish reasons." He said fiercely. "Now drop your weapons and surrender or I shall be forced to take precautionary measures." Before he could say anything else, Will lunged for Norrington's sword and tried to pull it away. Jack used this opportunity to grab his pistol and strike it on Norrington's head as hard as he could. The former Commodore fell to the ground and didn't get up again to their relief.

Their momentary victory was quickly put out as they heard the guards behind them catch up. The group turned around and found rifles aimed at them. Jack stepped in front of everyone with a very calm and relaxed expression on his face while Will pulled an unconscious Norrington with him to the women's side.

"Now, now gentlemen. We wouldn't want our precious Port Royal to be blown into little bits do we?" The guards widened their eyes as Jack smiled smugly at them. "That's right. Take one more step and I'll give my crew the command to fire canons at the lot of you. Then I'll go on firing at the houses and thus killing innocent commoners who have no notion of what is going on." Will looked at Carrie and Elizabeth and urged them to move towards one of the little rowboats while Jack continued distracting and threatening the guards. The guards had no idea what to do as they watched their prisoners escape. Jack slowly took steps backwards with that same expression on his face then made a mocking bow.

"Gentlemen, you shall remember this, as the day that you almost caught Captain Jack Sparrow." Will untied the boat from the docks as Jack ran towards them and jumped ungracefully into it. He used his boot to push them away and after grabbing the other oar, paddled together with Will as quickly as he could. The guards raised their rifles once more and began to aim. Jack turned around to face them and was about to remind them of his earlier threat when blades flew in mid-air and struck down each guard. He widened his eyes in surprise as every single men standing dropped their rifle and fell to the ground.

The group in the boat watched as a figure came out from the shadows and stood where the guards had been before. Marine's clone watched them row away with her arms crossed and a smirk on her face. She said nothing but her mere presence made a very unsettling mood hung over Jack and the others. Carrie unconsciously hugged her best friend close to her body while she looked at the other woman ashore warily. Will began looking around, expecting more pirates to arrive and attack them while they were still vulnerable. But nothing appeared and nothing happened to them. After a while the clone began to walk away and disappeared through one of the dark alleyways. A chill ran through Elizabeth's spine at the thought that she had caught up with them yet did nothing to stop them and had even saved them from being killed.

When they got up onto the Black Pearl Jack immediately started shouting orders at the crew. The men rushed about the ship as they prepared to leave Port Royal as quickly as they could. Norrington was taken to the brig where they would deal with him as soon as he woke up while Marine was brought to Jack's room together with the ship's doctor.

"Where are we going Jack?" Will asked as he stood beside Jack.

"For now, anywhere but here. No need to rush into things. We'll take it step by step." He said. "Things have been piling up one after another and if we don't settle them one by one we'll be buried in nothing but troubles." He placed his hands on the wheel of his beloved ship and gazed beyond the horizon in a deep and pensive mood. Will was taken aback by Jack's expression but didn't want to disturb the pirate from his thoughts. Instead he began to go below deck to the brig to check on Norrington. Carrie and Elizabeth saw Will headed there and followed him as well. The pirate, who wasn't as deep in his thoughts as Will assumed, watched them make their way down and gave a weary sigh. Things will definitely pose a problem for him now that Norrington has made himself their enemy. For the hundreth time, he wondered what possessed him to get into the mess he was in.


	17. A Guardian Devil

**AN**: Hi! In case I don't make it in time, an advanced Merry Christmas to you all! Please R & R!

* * *

_**"It's like you have your own guardian angel...except it isn't an angel who's really watching your back." - Carrie Lockheart**_

**Chapter 17 - A Guardian Devil**

Will reached the cell where Norrington was being held in and looked at the man who was slowly waking up from his short slumber. Will wasn't angry at the other man; he understood how Norrington wanted to keep his affiliation as away from the pirates as possible. He was a Royal Navy guard after all. But Will had his own personal worries and troubles and didn't like the thought of him or his friends being hanged to death. The other man groaned in pain as he sat up from the ground. He looked around him in confusion then narrowed his eyes when he realized where he was. He saw Will standing outside of his cell and felt his mood grow even worse.

"What do you want Turner?" He asked darkly. "I don't have the patience to listen to your lectures or your sermons." Before Will could open his mouth and answer, he heard the sound of more people coming down from the deck. He looked behind him and watched two furious women make their way to his side. Norrington still had a nasty glare on his face but said nothing to the newcomers and sat there in as dignified a manner as he could muster up in a cell.

"How could you betray us like that?! We trusted you!" Carrie shouted angrily.

"I highly doubt that Jack Sparrow and Marine trusted me with their lives." Norrington answered calmly. "If they did then they were fools to do so. I do not become friends with pirates nor would I risk my reputation and my life for them."

"Your reputation has already been tainted the moment you let Jack escape the first time you placed him in a cell!" Norrington gritted his teeth and clenched his hands into fists to keep himself from blowing up in anger. He would not give them the satisfaction of seeing him lose his composure. He wished that they would stop talking and leave him to himself. But it seemed that they still had a few things that they had to say.

"You think you're doing this for the good of the people and of the King of England but you know what? You're just being an arrogant, selfish prat! All you care about is you and your stupid reputation as part of the Royal Navy. You could have told us to leave you in your cell while we escaped if you wanted to stay away from pirates. But not only did you follow us, you also helped in fighting the guards. Then when you felt that you were safe enough, you decided to go over to the side that seemed to you to be the best way to keep your life from being shortened. All you wanted was to save your sorry pathetic self from being killed and to get the Royal Navy to promote you or praise you for your so called good deeds. How's that for the good of the people you no good, lying bastard!"

"Let me ask you this then; would you have allowed Sparrow to fire canons into the town if the guards won't back down?" Norrington asked her. She was taken aback and had no idea how to answer that question. "You think pirates have a good side in them but it's all nothing. A pirate is a pirate no matter how you look at them. They'll never be the good people you regard them as so highly. It's a ridiculous dream and one that will never come true no matter how much you wish for it to be."

"Now, don't put off the lass so quickly Norry. That's just plain mean of you." Everyone looked at the stairs and saw Jack making his way down the stairs in that casual swagger of his.

"Jack! How's everything going?" Will asked.

"We're far away from Port Royal now and although it looks like they're sending some ships to chase after us they won't be able to catch up to us. Marine has been tended to but she caught an infection from her wound and is suffering a high fever. Hopefully she'll get better soon. Now..." The pirate stood in front of Norrington's cell with his arms crossed and a very serious expression on his face. Norrington glared at Jack in return.

"If you're angry at me for 'betraying' you then you're even dumber than you look. I never said that I was on your side and I never wanted to be. The only reason I was with you from the start was because you saved us from the exploding ship weeks ago."

"I never said anything about trust or betrayals." Jack replied. "I knew, of course that our deal of you being part of my crew only lasted as long as we hadn't arrived in Port Royal. That agreement was finished the moment we stepped foot ashore. But not only did you not force us to stay in prison, you also helped us escape; going as far as to fight against your own kind. Do you mind explaining to us why you chose, at the most marvelous timing, to threaten us into surrendering?"

"Because you threatened to fire canons at Port Royal if they didn't agree to your demands!" That made Jack chuckle, which made Norrington feel even angrier. "What on earth are you laughing about pirate?"

"You would have been a very impressive pirate Norry, lying and hiding your intentions so perfectly well."

"What are you talking about? I am not lying and I am not hiding anything!"

"Of course you are. You're hiding your true intentions of threatening us back there and therefore lying to us as well. Oh don't give me that look. You know deep within yourself that you're just as bad as pirates are." If looks could kill, Jack would have dropped dead in front of everyone. Norrington wanted nothing more than to grab Jack and strangle him to death in his blind fury. It was the worst, most infuriating insult he has ever heard concerning himself.

"I will never be a pirate like you are Sparrow."

"You never know until you try." Jack said with a grin. "But until then, you'll have to figure it out for yourself whether you are a scoundrel or a man of the King." He looked at Will and the others who were listening to the conversation before looking back at Norrington.

"I'm being exceptionally nice today; probably because I just escaped another one of my hangings. Give me one good reason why I shouldn't throw you overboard right now and I won't." He said. Norrington said nothing as he glared at Jack with so much hatred in his eyes. Jack gave a mocking, regretful sigh as he shook his head slowly. "No answer? Well then if that's the case-"

"Wait! Jack you can't just throw him overboard. He'll die if you did." Carrie said, surprising everyone in the room. "I know he's a bastard and all...but there's no point in killing him so why should we?" Jack scratched the back of his head and gave a soft sigh.

"Fine. We'll drop him off at the next island we go to just so your conscience can be cleared. But until then, he stays right where he is. That's as far as I'm going to go for him. Now the three of you go upstairs and find yourselves something useful to do. Anything should be better than staying here." He muttered the last part softly to himself. He turned around and was the first one to leave the brig. They could hear him shouting for one of the crewmen; probably to be the one in charge of keeping an eye on Norrington. One by one the others walked away until it was only Carrie and the prisoner left. Carrie looked at Norrington with a frown.

"I wouldn't need to stop Jack from firing canons because he won't do it in the first place, even if all the odds were against him." She whispered softly before walking away as well.

* * *

When Carrie went up the stairs from the brig she immediately looked for Jack. She found him standing at the helm once more, steering the ship to wherever he was planning on taking them to next. She walked past those who were going about the ship and stood right behind the Captain. He gave no sign of noticing her or speaking to her so she decided to do it first. 

"Where are we going now Jack?"

"Well now that we've finished our little errand at Port Royal, I guess it's only right for us to focus our attentions on what's truly important; finding your clone. We'll head on to the nearest port to replenish our stocks first then make our way there." Jack replied. Carrie made an 'ah' sound then fell silent.

"So...do you think Vanessa's going to be alright?"

"Of course! She's Sharpshooter Marine. She'll be up and about in no time at all." Jack purposely left out the part that Marine's usual strength had been taken away by the clone and therefore made her weaker. He hoped that she didn't think of it then. And he hoped that Marine would make it all right despite those inconveniences. Carrie didn't think of the pessimistic thoughts Jack had and smiled in part relief. But although Carrie wasn't thinking of that, she was thinking of other things.

"If I was stronger...or if I knew how to fight with a sword then this would never have happened." She said as she looked down at the ground guiltily.

"Now now don't say such things love. No one here's to blame for what happened. I'm sure Marine isn't blaming you for it as well. All you can do now is pray for her and help her get through her suffering."

"Guess so..." Right after she said that she felt an awkward silence come between them and wondered if she should break it or not. She had other questions she wanted to ask Jack but didn't know if it would be right to ask them.

"Something troubling you love?" Carrie gave a start as Jack asked her a question instead. She looked at him to find him staring at her with a considering, curious expression on his face. She turned a slight red and looked down to avoid his stare.

"Uh...no not really. It's not important."

"Well it must be important to you since you're thinking about it so intently." When Carrie still didn't answer he frowned. "Come on why don't you tell o'l Jack your problem. I might even know how to help ye with it." He said. Carrie knew for a fact that he could help her with it. But whether she was going to be happy with his answer or not was another thing. Jack still kept his eyes on her until Carrie couldn't take it anymore and sighed.

"Jack...would you have fired the canon at Port Royal if the guards didn't agree to let us go?" She asked. Jack stayed silent for a long while considering his answer. Carrie felt her fear rise up her throat. She looked at him incredulously. "You weren't actually considering doing it were you?!"

"No! Well...I mean...if the situation had been different...I...well...it's best not to think of such things. What's done is done and wondering about 'what ifs' won't make any difference. You wouldn't understand it either way." Jack said with no other way to answer and look good at the same time. Carrie narrowed her eyes at him and pursed her lips.

"Then help me understand it better! Teach me how to become a pirate like you." Jack widened his eyes at her request. Now he understood how Marine felt when all Carrie kept thinking about was how amazing and wondrous it was to be a pirate.

"I can't do that love! We're very busy trying to catch these clones and with the Royal Navy after us and storms that unpredictably come to attack the ship not to mention other pirates who hate my guts and want nothing more than to kill me..." Carrie interrupted him by stepping closer to him. Jack didn't step back but he moved his upper body away from the young woman. It was a comical scene; Carrie staring at Jack who had his back arched uncomfortably and his hands in front of him in a pathetic attempt to defend himself.

"Please Jack. I want you to teach me how to use a sword. How to tie the riggings properly. How to navigate. How to steer the ship. Everything there is to know about being a pirate! Is that too much to ask?"

"What gave you this sudden drive to become a pirate, lass?" Jack asked her.

"I want to prove to Vanessa that I can become a pirate. I hate feeling useless but that's exactly what I've been feeling every time we get into some sort of trouble. It's not fair that she won't allow me to become a pirate while she only became one because of her past. I can be as strong as everyone else is. And I want to prove to everyone else that not all pirates are evil and cruel. I'll show them that pirates can be good too!" Jack suppressed a sigh as he looked at the heated young woman before him. How he wished Marine was doing well so he can put this problem in her hands instead. She was her best friend after all. He cursed himself for being too soft on women as he looked about the deck in search of someone.

"Carter!" He shouted. The young man whose name had been called looked up from his chore and ran up to Jack as quickly as he could.

"Aye captain?"

"Take the lass along with you for now. And help her when she asks questions or wants to know something."

"Aye aye Captain!" Carrie's face brightened up so much that Jack wondered if he made the right choice or not. She opened up her arms and was about to embrace Jack out of her happiness when the pirate stepped even farther away from her.

"Ye can thank me by going now! Go before I decide to change my mind." He said as he made quick shooing gestures at her. Carrie nodded her head vigorously and followed Carter down the helm with a cheerful spring to her step. Jack watched her and shook his head slowly. He was sure that he wasn't that excited when he had started out his life as a pirate. He found himself alone once more and was glad of it. He placed his hands on the wheel of his ship like a gentle lover and gazed beyond the horizon with a calm, dream-like gaze.

"Jack!!" The pirate looked down from the helm and saw Cornelius and Jones headed towards him.

"What is it now?" He asked in irritation.

"What the hell happened back there at Port Royal? We were waiting for you not far from the island as you ordered when all of a sudden the clone Marine came and told us to go closer to the island. Then we found out that you guys were having a bit of trouble over there." Jones explained. Jack widened his eyes in surprise, his previous irritation suddenly gone.

"The other Marine told you to go close to shore?" When the two nodded in reply, he began to play with the braids on his chin. "That's interesting...well it's pretty obvious now that she doesn't want our lovely Maria to be killed by anyone other than herself. If she did die, then the clone would never be complete. Isn't that right?" He asked the older man. Cornelius nodded his head in agreement again. "Well then that's not really a bad thing now is it? If she hadn't arrived we would have been in big trouble back at Port Royal. Let's just be thankful for it and move on..." Jack stepped back from the helm and shouted for Gibbs. Jones and Cornelius watched as Jack made his way down the helm towards the galley.

* * *

There was no rough rocking of the boat, and that caused her to wake up. Marine slowly opened her eyes and found herself looking up at the dark wooden ceiling of the cabin. Her mind was fuzzy; her memories and events mixed up into one big blob of confusion. Her whole body felt stiff and sweaty. Trying to think made her head hurt. She was still trying to wake up from what she assumed was her long sleep when someone opened the door and entered the cabin. She moved her head to the side and saw through her dizziness the form of a person coming closer to the bed she was lying on. 

"Marine! Thank goodness you're finally awake. We were all so worried when you wouldn't wake up even after your fever broke."

"Fever?" Her voice sounded hoarse and foreign to her. She suddenly wanted to drink up the whole ocean to quench her thirst. The dizziness was slowly fading from her mind and her thoughts were slowly coming together but it wasn't enough to make her quickly comprehend what was said. She saw Elizabeth standing before her and sat up on the bed with great effort. It felt like she hadn't used her body for years. "What happened? Where am I?" She asked.

"Let me get you a glass of water and something to eat first. You haven't had anything to eat for a whole week now and I'm afraid that delaying that any longer would kill you." Before Marine could ask further questions, Elizabeth disappeared from the cabin. A few minutes later everyone else went inside. Carrie was the first one to walk up to her and hug her tightly. The others followed Carrie but didn't hug the female pirate.

"Vanessa thank goodness you're alright!" Marine winced slightly at the force of the hug but did her best to hide her discomfort and pat Carrie on the back. Will gently pulled Carrie away to her relief then the two, together with the others settled around the room. She looked at each person in the room then lastly at Jack who had a bottle of rum in his hand.

"What's going on? How did I get here? Where are we now? And where's Norrington?" She asked. At the mention of the former Commodore's name everyone in the room stiffened. Marine was still too weak to notice and simply went on looking at Jack expectantly. "Well?" Jack was about to open his mouth and answer when Elizabeth entered the room once more and placed the tray of dishes she had been carrying in front of Marine.

"We'll explain everything while you eat. If you don't eat then I'll make sure no one tells you anything." Marine grimaced at Elizabeth then picked up the fork and bit on some of the food. She picked up the glass of water and drank it gratefully. She did feel better as she looked at the other woman with a frown. "Threatening and forceful as always. Will's going to have a troublesome time living with you as his wife." Jack, Will and Carrie coughed to hide their laughter while Elizabeth's lips thinned to a straight line. Jack cleared his throat, bringing all the attention to him, then spoke to Marine.

"First, we are currently docking at Port Salut since we have no plan of action after our little venture in Port Royal. Next, if you remembered, you were shot and fainted when you tried to save us back at the dungeons. You caught a high fever and you have been sleeping in my cabin for a week. As for Norry..." He looked at everyone in the room first before looking back at Marine. "He tried to keep us from escaping back at Port Royal. We managed to subdue him but we had to bring him with us as a result. He's currently at the brig, thinking about his past actions." Marine sighed when she listened to the story and shook her head from side to side.

"Why am I not surprised? Well there's no use worrying about that." Slowly she began to remember things that happened earlier. She remembered the wedding and the guards who came and interrupted it. She remembered fighting and sending Carrie and Elizabeth off to escape while she kept the guards busy. She remembered being captured and her path to the gallows the next morning. Then she remembered...

"It was her!" She cried in surprise and realization. Everyone looked at her in confusion and waited for her to further explain herself. Marine placed her hands on her face as she recalled how she had been saved from being hung to death.

"That other Marine...either she was in the disguise of the executioner or the disguise of the man who was announcing all my crimes. She spoke to me...and saved me from being hung to death..." She placed a hand to her throat and grimaced as she remembered the feel of the rope rubbing against her skin. "The noose around me wasn't tied to the post. So when I fell down the trapdoor I collapsed to the ground. That was how I escaped death at the gallows and that was how I came to the dungeons to try and get all of you free." She explained. Elizabeth and Carrie widened their eyes in surprise.

"Why would the other Marine try to save you?" Carrie asked. Like Jack, Marine immediately understood the reason behind the other woman's actions.

"Isn't it obvious? Her goal is to become a whole person. She can't do that with me dead. So she saved my life..." Marine thought about how ironic it was that the clone was going to keep saving her life until she killed her herself. Carrie felt a cold shiver run down her spine at the thought of it.

"It's like you have your own guardian angel...except it isn't an angel who's really watching your back."

"More like a guardian devil." Marine muttered. "On the other hand, it can be used to our advantage. This way, I'll have the satisfaction of knowing that I won't die as long as she doesn't get a hold of another coin." As she mentioned this her hand went to the spot on her neck. Her face suddenly paled and her eyes grew wide with fear. Carrie held her shoulder and looked at her in concern.

"Vanessa? What's wrong?"

"The coin...it's gone from my neck." She checked her pockets and felt all her worries rise. "It's not with me anymore. The guards must have taken it when we were caught. The other clone could have..." Carrie widened her eyes as well and felt her whole body grow stiff.

"What are we going to do now? She'll have the advantage over you now. She wouldn't need to save you as long as she could get to you before you died."

"Calm down Carrie. You calm down as well Marine. It's not over yet. We still have a chance." Will said in a calm voice. That wasn't the only coin that existed..." As he said this he looked at Cornelius. " Cornelius could take us to the chest. We can take it along with us and use the coins there to fight back." He explained. Cornelius widened his eyes in surprise and fear then sighed in defeat.

"Yes, I could take you to where Thomas and I hid the chest. That would probably be the best plan of action we can do now with the little we know." He said.

"Then it's settled! I shall assign Cornelius to the navigations then. Once the crew has restocked the ship with the necessities and once we get Norrington to some deserted island or the like, we can head on to the island where the chest is hidden in." Jack said. "Now, we should talk about where we're going to drop ol Norry. A simple deserted island isn't any fun at all! What about we send him to a pirate-infested town then tell everyone that he's the former commodore? Or maybe we could take him to an island filled with cannibals..." Both Carrie and Marine looked at each other then laughed aloud to eveyone's confusion. But Marine was still feeling weak and cut off her laughter by coughing aloud. That made Elizabeth's maternal instincts kick in. She turned around at everyone and began to push them out of the room.

"Well now that everything's been discussed I say we leave Marine to herself and let her get some well deserved rest. I want everybody out of this room!"

"But it's my cabin!" Jack whined. Elizabeth narrowed her eyes at him warningly. Jack took the message and quickly walked out while muttering something about 'women' and 'bad luck'. Everyone else followed Jack out of the cabin. Elizabeth herself was the last to leave.

"I don't want you leaving this cabin Marine. I'll check up on you from time to time so get some rest so you can get better quickly." She said before closing the door to the cabin. Marine found herself alone inside the cabin and didn't know whether to be relieved or annoyed by that. She wanted to disobey Elizabeth and go out into the fresh air after being isolated in the sickly, humid and dark room. But she had a bad feeling that the other woman would ask Jack to order one of the crew to keep an eye on the cabin door. And it wouldn't be a surprise to her if there was one now, making sure that she wouldn't leave unless she wanted to jump into the sea through the window. For a moment she considered jumping into the water then going up the hull of the ship. After that moment passed she realized how stupid the idea was and used her time in the cabin idly.

Marine was currently sitting on the bed and taking a look at the maps that Jack had kept in his room. There were quite a lot that Jack had even for a pirate. She was amazed to find every port, every water form and every small island, whether inhabited or not, marked on the parchment. She was holding one up to the sunlight when someone entered the cabin. For a moment she ignored the newcomer then when she noticed that no one was shouting angrily about getting private things or something similar, she looked at the door and saw not Jack like she expected but Cornelius. He stood there and looked at the maps in surprise. Marine smiled at him as she set the map on the bed.

"You're not going to tell Jack that I was taking a look at his things will you? I don't think he'll like knowing about my snooping around his cabin."

"No...actually I was going to speak to you about something concerning maps." Cornelius replied as he made his way to the bed. Marine raised an eyebrow in curiosity but said nothing as she watched Cornelius look at the maps she spread out on the bed. When it seemed like he wasn't going to start the conversation, she decided to do it.

"So what is it that you want to tell me?" She asked. Cornelius hesitated for a moment as he looked around at anything but her. After a while he sighed and took one of the maps from the pile.

"I'm getting old Marine. And there are thousands of possibilities that could happen as we continue on our journey. If I die, no one would take you to that cave and you will have the disadvantage." He began as he played with the map's edges lightly. Marine frowned at him.

"Don't say that! Being pessimistic won't do us any good here. We shouldn't think about things like deaths or disadvantages when they haven't even occurred yet." Cornelius looked at her intently which surprised her. He held her hand and gripped it tightly.

"I'm not being pessimistic young Marine. I'm being realistic. It won't do good if I die without anyone else knowing the course to the treasure chest. And since this trip is going to be very dangerous whether we believe it or not, the possibility that something bad will happen is high. As Thomas' old friend, I want to show you the route to our hiding place. To where the aztec treasure chest is." Marine widened her eyes in surprise and found herself at a loss for words. Cornelius didn't take too much notice of this and went on.

"I am very sure that your father would be happy if you used that chest to save yourself. We were the ones who pushed you into this mess but as much as I want to, I can't help you finish this problem. I'm not as young as I used to be...heck I wasn't even that young when I started this journey." He looked at Marine in the eye. "I am truly sorry for bringing this upon you. You're the only one who can save yourself now. But that won't stop me from doing everything I can to give you a bit of help."

"Are you sure about this?" Marine asked him. Cornelius smiled and patted the hand he held lovingly.

"Yes, I'm sure. So are you going to listen or not?" Marine smiled back and nodded to Cornelius. The older man put back the map he was holding then began to look for a specific one. At last he found it and placed it on top of everything else. Then with a finger, he began to trace the map with an invisible line. Marine's eyes followed every path intently and she widened her eyes when at last he stopped his finger on a certain spot on the map and spoke the name of the place. She looked up at him incredulously.

"Are you serious?! You and my dad kept the treasure there? There of all places!" She cried. Cornelius looked at her with a surprised look on his face.

"You know where this is?"

"I've heard of its existence but I never thought that you would put it there." He chuckled and wagged a finger at her.

"You should never take anything for granted, Marine. Your father and I searched high and low for the perfect place; we found it right here." He tapped on the spot on the map to emphasize it further. Marine couldn't help but chuckle.

"I got to had it to you Cornelius. It is very ingenious of you. No one would suspect a thing."

"That was the point." The man replied with a laugh. He looked back at the maps on the bed then stood up. "Well, now that I've finally told you where it is, if something were to happen to me then at least there would be one other person on this ship who knows. I'll be off then. Take care of yourself Marine."

"Thank you Cornelius." She told him. "For giving me this information." He gave a small smile then after nodding, left the cabin. Marine sat there and looked back at the map as she remembered the way Cornelius finger traced the map.

"So that's where the chest is..."


	18. Snakey Detour

**AN:** Weee I'm on a typing spree! Many thanks to tweedledee123 for her lovely review. I'm glad that there are some people out there who still read my story. Without further ado, here's the next chapter! Read and Review, but most of all, enjoy!

* * *

_**"Well now that the snake has stopped leading us to wherever it was supposed to lead us to, how do we know where we are?" - Jones Westley**_

**Chapter 18 - Snakey Detour**

Marine was more than glad to be finally out of Jack's cabin. She placed her hands on the rails and leaned forward as much as she could. She closed her eyes and sighed peacefully as a cool sea breeze brushed her face and swept her hair in all directions. It had been three days since she first woke up. They were on their way to drop Norrington on some island. She looked around her and watched with envy as others moved about the ship with purpose. Although Elizabeth approved of her release, she was still recovering and so wasn't allowed to do any strenuous work. She looked up at the crow's nest with envy and wished that she could go up there right now and enjoy the weather and the peace that was currently over them all.

A pair of feet without any boots suddenly appeared above her; legs swinging side to side freely. Marine widened her eyes in surprise then squinted at the figure so high up. She wondered who it was up there but knew that if she was seen climbing up then Elizabeth would have a fit and scold her to no end. She thought about calling the person's attention but had no idea what to shout aloud. She didn't have to think further because the legs suddenly disappeared and was replaced with a familiar head.

"There's gonna be a storm coming Jack!"

"That's Captain to you!" Jack shouted back. Marine jumped in surprise when she heard the voice right behind her. She swiveled around and faced Jack who was grinning brightly at her.

"Maria! It's good to know that you're not dead yet. Do you feel better love?" He asked. Marine narrowed her eyes at Jack at the use of her first name and ignored him by turning her attention back at the person on the crow's nest.

"Carrie! What the hell are you doing up there?" She cried. Carrie didn't answer immediately and instead began to go down the ropes. She made a point of doing long jumps and swift swings as she slowly made her way to Jack and Marine. When she was a few feet away from the ground she dropped her hold on the rope and landed on the ground gracefully and held out her arms to the side like an acrobat.

"What do you think Vanessa? Am I good or what?"

"Let me repeat myself; what the hell were you doing up at the crow's nest? You could have slipped; fell into the sea or worse, cracked your head open on the deck." She said worriedly. Carrie frowned at Marine and crossed her arms disappointingly.

"You should have been impressed with what I did. I've been working hard on climbing up and down the ropes that easily." She said.

"You mean you've been doing that before?" Marine asked with her eyes wide in surprise. She looked at Jack who held up his hands and shook his head. She didn't buy his expression and poked his chest with her finger. "Don't give me that look Sparrow. I know you have something to do with this."

"Leave him alone! I wanted to learn how to become a pirate so I asked him to teach me. It was his decision whether he allowed me to learn or not." Marine quickly swiveled her head at Jack who immediately moved back with his arms raised up in defense.

"You taught her how to become a pirate?!" She cried.

"Actually, it was Carter who taught her." Jack replied pointedly with a forced and short laugh. Marine wasn't laughing and felt her irritation grow at the pirate. But before she could say anything they all heard the first thunder of the day. They turned to the skies and watched as the clouds quickly darkened and loomed over them. Glad to have a bit of distraction, Jack grinned at Marine and patted her shoulder lightly.

"A storm's coming love, so let's discuss this some other time. All hands on deck! Bring down the sails!" He began to shout as he walked away from the two women and made his way to the helm. Carrie sneaked away from Marine before they were truly alone and ran off to where Carter was so she could help out as well. Marine realized a bit too late that she was alone on the deck and couldn't help but sigh. She stood there while the rest of the crew began to bustle about in very frantic energy. Will walked up to her when he noticed that she wasn't doing anything and touched her shoulder gently.

"Are you all right Marine?" He asked worriedly. Marine was startled from her trance-like state and gave a small smile to Will.

"Yeah, I'm fine. I was just thinking about some things. We better go and help out the others. Looks like this storm's pretty big." Marine said as she looked up at the sky again.

"You be careful Marine. We wouldn't want anyone going overboard again do we?" He teased lightly. Marine felt her mood lift a little and chuckled as she slapped Will's arm playfully.

"And what makes you think that I'll go overboard again?" Will gave her an innocent look.

"I never said you were going overboard. I just said that someone might." Marine smirked at him.

"All right wise guy. Go and start working or someone will really fall off from this ship." She teased back as she grabbed his arm and began to drag him away from where they were standing. She let Will move on to the sails to help the crew bring them down and set her eyes on Jack who stood at the helm with his hands holding on firmly to the wheel. An ominous thunder rolled across the sky as it began to grow dark with storm clouds hovering above them. Marine gazed at Jack and for a moment forgot every single clumsy, idiotic act that he had done in the past and saw him as the great pirate that he was. Jack standing before the helm with the dark clouds gathering underneath reminded Marine of her admirations for the pirate.

Which, she began to notice with an irritating feeling, was slowly becoming something else.

The moment was ruined as Jack saw her looking at him and gave her one of his trademark, perverted grin. She grumbled and made her way up to his side, with every intention of beating him up to a bloody pulp. The storms began to rumble louder as the ship, with its passengers, moved on. The crew's activities on the upper deck were beginning to slow down as more of the work was finished. All they needed to do now was wait for the storm to come and make sure that nothing was going to fall off the ship and that no one was going to die. Marine reached the helm and felt the first signs of the storm arrive. Light rain began to pelt on her head and her shoulders. She ignored them and crossed her arms in front of Jack.

"Sparrow we need to have a discussion concerning your decision to make my young friend Carrie a pirate." She began.

"Not now love, I have to keep this ship in tact while we're passing through the storm. Won't be a good idea to leave it unattended to."

"Get Cotton or Gibbs to take the helm then."

"I'm afraid it's not that simple. You see, I'm the captain of this lovely ship. And as captain, it is my duty to captain this ship that I am captain of. It wouldn't be right if I slacked off and not work just as hard as my men are during a very dangerous time like the storm that is about to come down upon us. So I would appreciate it if we had this discussion some other time. Now leave me be and get back to your work. I'm sure there will be something for you to do during the storm." He said with a casual wave of his hand.

Marine narrowed her eyes at Jack as she moved forward and placed her hand on the wheel to bring Jack's attention on her. Jack stared at the hand on the wheel and dropped his hands from it with a start, as if he had never seen a hand in his life. He was going to pretend that it wasn't there and get back to steering. He turned it right first, with Marine pushing it to the left, then he tried turning it to the left. When that didn't work he gripped the wheel tight and began to force the wheel to turn with as much strength as he could muster up. But Marine grabbed the wheel as well and forced it not to move. They struggled after a while but Marine knew before she even attempted to fight with the wheel that she was going to lose. She didn't want to give Jack that satisfaction; so she lifted her left leg and slammed it down on Jack's foot as hard as she could.

Jack gave a loud cry of pain and immediately dropped his hold on the steering wheel. He took a step back and hopped around the helm while holding onto his right foot. After a while he stopped and he stomped back to Marine's side. He grabbed her wrist harshly and narrowed his eyes at her with an angry glare. Marine began to feel a slight chill of fear from the pit of her stomach and suppressed the urge to make Jack release her then run as far away as she could. She remembered that very same gaze that was directed at her a few months ago and remembered how frightened she was at that moment.

"You are beginning to test my patience Marine." He said in a dangerously low tone. "No one makes a fool of Jack Sparrow and gets away with it." Marine bit inside her cheek and struggled not to show her fear. Being threatened would have been fine for her, but being threatened while she was weak was not going to turn out well for her. She narrowed her eyes at Jack in defiance.

"What are you going to do to me then Sparrow? Throw me overboard? Kill me in front of everyone here? Betray me to the evil Marine or to the Royal Navy?" Jack widened his eyes and quickly released his grip on her.

"Kill you? Betray you? My dear Maria I would never do such a thing." He said. "What gave you that idea? If I was going to betray you then I would have done so aeons ago." He looked at her for a few more minutes before heaving a heavy sigh and calling Gibbs to take the helm. Then begrudgingly, he motioned for Marine to follow him as he went down the stairs. Marine watched Jack with confusion written all over her face. For one moment, he had been angry and he seemed murderous. The next, he was back to his normal self as if what had happened earlier never did happen. Jack stopped walking when he noticed that Marine wasn't following him and looked over his shoulder.

"Well? You wanted to talk with me right? Hurry up before I change my mind." Marine shook her head of her wandering thoughts and followed Jack down the stairs towards his cabin. They passed Gibbs and Will, who both looked at the two curiously. Carrie saw them enter the cabin and couldn't help but worry about what Marine was going to do to Jack. She frowned and narrowed her eyes as she went back to work.

"She isn't my mother. I can do whatever I want with my life. She has no right to be mad at him for what I did." She mumbled. As she helped out the crew, her eyes would glance to the door to Jack's cabin from time to time, wondering to herself what they were doing inside and if they had already killed each other.

* * *

Marine entered Jack's cabin first and heard the sound of the door closing followed by bootsteps coming closer to her. She turned around to face Jack and saw him looking at her with a frown. She narrowed her eyes at him and was about to open her mouth when he opened his first. 

"Look love, I know how upset you are that the lass is becoming too involved with pirates, seeing as how dangerous their lives are and all that, but you can't just be there by her side all the time and protect her. The lass needs to learn how to look after herself. And I say that teaching her a thing or two about being one of us is not that bad now is it? I mean, you've got me. And I suppose Will is part pirate with his father's blood running through his veins. And we mustn't forget yourself of course. The most feared female pirate in the whole of the Caribbean."

"It's different with me and her and you know that." She told him. "How can you say that she'll be all right? You're teaching her to become a pirate! A liar, a cheater, a thief, but most of all a murderer! Why do you have to give her the hopes of becoming a pirate? Now it'll be harder to keep her from being too excited about it. Thanks a lot Sparrow."

"It wasn't my fault that she wants to be a pirate! And there's nothing else I can do short of torturing her or killing her myself to get her to be convinced otherwise. She's even more persistent and demanding than you are."

"Well you should have been even more determined not to let her do the things she wanted."

"There's only so much that a pirate can do in one day love. And besides, you should be thankful that I only told Carter to teach her everything she needed to know about sailing a ship. There's no harm in letting Carrie learn how to do that one. Nothing dangerous or moral-crushing at all." He assured her.

"And what are you going to do if she starts asking you to teach her how to fight with swords? Or if she asks you to let her join the crew? Or worse, if she wants to try and help when we start fighting with other pirates or Royal Navy guards?"

"First off, I'll teach her how to use a sword of course. If she's going to be joining us in our dangerous plights then she must know a thing or two about defending herself else she'll either get in the way or get killed in the process. As you've mentioned earlier, you can't be by her side and protect her all the time. Second, it wouldn't bother me if she asks me to join the crew. As long as she does her work without complaints and does them well. Lastly, there's no harm in letting her join in a few fights. What's the purpose of teaching her how to use the sword if she won't get the chance to use them?"

"Sparrow..."

"You can't protect her all the time. She's bound to make some mistakes whether you want her to or not. And there's also the fact that she's part of this dangerous adventure we've all gotten ourselves into. You know just as much as anyone else does that you can't send her back to your own world for safety. To do so would kill her, as Cornelius mentioned to us before."

"Then we send her with Will and Elizabeth on some port where they will be safe!"

"But supposing we fail and all die in the process, the other Carrie will go after her in order to be whole. Carrie wouldn't be safe then, and what's worse is she'll have no one to help her fight against the clone."

"Then we'll make sure that we win."

"And leave her soul incomplete for the rest of her life?" Marine frowned and closed her eyes as she fought against crying in front of Jack.

"I don't know..."

"You can't make her keep running away from her problems because you're afraid that she'll get hurt. She has to be involved and she will get hurt whether you try protecting her or not. If she has to be then it would be a lot better if she knew a thing or two about defending herself or at least be able to prepare herself for anything that will come her way." Jack took a step forward to hold her shoulders and gave them a small, comforting rub.

"Everything will be all right love. Trust me." Marine closed her eyes and sighed.

"Fine." She muttered. Then after a while she spoke louder. "Fine." She looked up at Jack and found herself looking back into his own chocolate brown eyes. She heard of people talking about drowning in someone's eyes and didn't believe them. Now she struggled to breathe as she looked at those eyes. She felt her heart flutter and her stomach do somersaults and flips. His rough, calloused but warm hands slid up her neck, sending chills down her spine. Then his hands cupped both sides of her cheek and brought them closer to his face until they could feel each other's breaths.

"This time, there'll be no interruptions." Marine felt the whole world spin as she felt Jack's lips on hers. She closed her eyes and let herself go. Everything she ever felt about the pirate came pouring out of her through that one kiss. She wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him deeper, craving more for the taste of him. Jack's hands left her cheeks and moved down to wrap around her waist. He brought her closer to him until there was no more space between them. Marine let a moan come out from her throat as Jack bit the bottom of her lip then licked them teasingly. Marine opened her mouth and let her tongue play with his in a little wrestling game.

When they broke apart for air they said nothing. Marine still had her arms around his neck and Jack had his around her waist. Marine was breathing heavily and was trying to push the cloud of bliss out of her mind. She could still feel Jack's lips on hers and taste them even when it was already over. Jack lifted one hand and played with the short strands of Marine's hair while he looked at her. Marine mumbled something that Jack couldn't hear. He furrowed his brows as he moved his ear closer to her.

"What was that love?"

"_I.Hate.You._" She muttered as her breathing slowly began to regulate to its normal rhythm. She hated Jack Sparrow because as soon as all the dangerously bottled up emotions in her were released, her head cleared and she was able to reflect more on herself. And she came to one terrifying conclusion that she was starting to feel more than admiration and liking to the pirate. A grin spread across Jack's face when he heard what she said.

"Well if hating me means you get to do this to me all the time then I'm not complaining." Marine bit back a retort in fear of saying more than she should let Jack know. She didn't want Jack to know that she had lost it all the moment she had let her feelings take over. She didn't want to give him the satisfaction of knowing that he had gotten a hook on her. Her fragile heart felt empty and hollow now, and she imagined Jack holding it in his hand without any thought of taking care of it.

Before they could go further with their conversation, the ship rocked violently to the side. Jack took a step back and managed to keep himself balanced. If Marine didn't have her arms around Jack then, she would have fallen to the ground. They looked at the door, where the deck was, and could hear the loud violent roar of the storm together with the chaotic cries of the crew. They sounded very panicked of something else aside from the storm. Jack narrowed his eyes and let go of Marine before making his way to the door and grumbling about how his crew would be loss without him. Marine followed Jack and was greeted with a splash of water. She coughed and wiped her face just in time to see a large tail slam down on the starboard side of the deck and tearing down a part of the railings. She widened her eyes in surprise and watched it slither back into the sea.

"What the hell?!" She could barely hear her own voice through the raging storm. And jumped in surprise at the hand that suddenly held her shoulder. She saw Will through the heavy sheet of rain; his hair soggy, wet, and plastered to his face. "What's going on?" Marine shouted. Will looked at the sea and gripped the hilt of the sword he held tighter before looking at Marine.

"There's a snake attacking the ship!"

"A _what_?"

"A snake!" Marine thought she was hearing things until the large creature reappared on the same side where it had disappeared to earlier. It was a snake all right. A huge 20ft. one with his poisoned-tipped fangs bared at them. But it didn't attack them like she thought it would. Instead it jumped over the ship, and dived into the water on the port side. Marine had her mouth agape as she saw the whole length of the snake go over 5 feet above her head. Could they ever stand a chance against something like that? Then she remembered the second movie. Remembered Will and the rest of the crew fighting against the deadly Kraken and willed herself to become strong. They will find a way to beat the snake. It will only take a matter of time.

There was a loud crash and the whole ship tipped to the right. Marine and Will, together with the rest of the men who were there on the deck, fell to the ground and began sliding towards the right. There was another bump, and the ship tilted even more to the right. With the ground wet and slippery, pirates began sliding over the ship and falling into the water. Marine felt her feet touch air and gave a short scream as she began to go over the edge of the ship. A hand caught her wrist and kept her from falling. Marine looked up and saw Will holding onto the rails and onto her at the same time.

"Hold on Marine!" Will shouted. She felt the ship as the snake bumped it to the side once more. If she hadn't known any better, it looked to her like the snake was trying to lead them somewhere. Another bump on the ship and a tilt to the right made her confirm her thoughts. The snake was trying to move the ship off course and on to a different path. She remembered a conversation she overheard at one of the taverns in Port Royal and felt a cold chill run down her spine.

_"Who the bloody 'ell is this lass man? She must be daft to claim that she owns two ferocious creatures like the Kraken an' a sea snake."_

_"Ye haven't heard then? Tis' Sharpshooter Marine who owns them creatures."_

Was the clone trying to make the snake lead them to wherever she is? It seemed logical, since she supposedly had the coin in her hands already. Why not ambush the Black Pearl during a storm and let a large snake bring them into her hands? She and her so called crew could easily bring them all down since they would be tired and weakened because of the storm.

_Over my dead body._

Marine forced her eyes to see through the rain, to find anything that would get the snake to stop attacking them. She saw the closed windows leading to the canons not far below her and felt a stroke of idea come to her head. After getting out her sword from its sheath, she looked at Will and began to wriggle her hand free of his grip. Will, who hadn't expected it, let a part of her hand slip. He looked down at her with wide and frightened eyes.

"What are you trying to do Marine?! You're going to get yourself killed!" He shouted.

"Let me go Will! I have a plan." She shouted back. Will raised an eyebrow skeptically but didn't have time to think through what Marine said. The female pirate used her other hand to make Will release his grip on her and fell down a few feet. She brought her sword down on the hull of the ship right beside the window and hung there like a rag doll as the ship continued to move. She lifted her leg next and began to repeatedly kick the closed window as hard as she could. The sound of the her leg connecting onto hard wood was lost to her in the storm. Pain shot through her leg but she ignored it and continued her attack. When that wouldn't work, she pulled her free hand back and began to punch the wood. Splinters and blood splattered on her clothes as she punched. After what seemed to her like hours, the wood gave way and her hand went through the wood. She kicked once more, making the hole on the wood larger. Then when she was sure that it was large enough, she grabbed the spiked edges-feeling splinters sink into her hand-and pushed herself inside.

She fell onto the floor with a loud thud and tried to regain her breathing. Her limbs felt like lead, making it hard for her to lift them up. A cold and violent breeze blew through the hole in the window and made her whole body shiver. Her teeth began to chatter as she trembled and her head was swimming in pain as the ship rolled and swayed violently. She wanted to throw up and die right where she was and forget about everything else that was making her suffer. The sound of men screaming above deck brought her back to her senses though. She couldn't let them all fall into the clone's trap. She had to do something.

Her body screamed in protest as she struggled to stand up. She held onto the wall as the ship rocked again. When it was back to its usual sway she opened one of the windows and saw the top of the snake's head coming at her. It slammed its body onto the hull of the ship, making her fall to the ground as she lost her balance. The shutter broke and fell into the sea with the attack, leaving the window open. She staggered up then moved in search of a canon. She saw one at the corner of the dark room and made her way to that as fast as she could. She carried one of the canon balls and with whatever strength she could muster up, pushed it into the mouth of the weapon. Then she carried a barrel of gunpowder and loaded the canon with it. Once she was sure she forgot nothing, she pushed the canon towards the open window. It took her some time before she could bring the canon to the window. She struggled with the sway of the ship and the hard crashes of the snake onto the hull. When she reached there, the snake had gone back into the water and was preparing itself for another attack.

She aimed the canon straight and held the line of the canon in anticipation. She saw the snake and kept her eyes on it, waiting for the right time to pull the rope and fire the canon at it. Her hand gripped the rope tightly as the snake began making its way to her. Just as it jumped out of the water to bump against the hull, she pulled the canon.

The sound of the explosion rang aloud in her ears as the canon recoiled and rolled to the other side of the ship. She fell to the floor on her butt and watched the snake give a roar of pain outside the window. It screamed then began to swim away from them, leaving a trail of blood behind it. She heaved a sigh of relief, knowing that the snake wasn't going to bother them for now. Her thoughts were interrupted as someone grabbed her shoulders and helped her to her feet.

"Are you mad?" Will cried. "What were you thinking, making me let you go? If you had this idea you should have told someone about it! Not go off on your own." He looked at her bloodied hands and frowned. "This recklessness is going to kill you someday." Marine ignored his lecture and looked at him worriedly.

"Is everyone all right? Elizabeth? Cornelius? Jones? Carrie? Ja-Sparrow?" She asked him. She saw the muscles on his jaw clench with annoyance before he closed his eyes and heaved a heavy sigh of defeat. He nodded at her and began leading her away from the room.

"Everyone is fine, unlike someone else I know." He added. "Jack was at the helm, steering this ship last time I checked. The rest are at the galley, where I'm taking you to right now." Will helped her go up the stairs and out into the dark halls. Marine could still hear the rain pattering on the ship and the soft rumble of thunder. The storm was still going strong, sending the ship this way and that, and it made Marine's fears of being caught by the clone disappear. Now even the clone wouldn't know where they ended up in. As the last of her strength ebbed away, her vision began to go blurry and she accidentally tripped on her own feet. Will caught her and carried her in his arms bridal-style.

"Marine? Are you all right?"

"Yeah..." She managed to mutter. "I'm just...so tired." Will began to move as quickly as possible and reached the galley where the others were. He was surprised to find Jack standing with the rest. Compared to the others, and because he was out under the storm before he came there, Jack was soaking wet and had a puddle forming below his feet. Strands of his hair were sticking out of random places and the khol under his eyes had been rubbed off. Jack did not look happy as he stood there together with the others; he looked pissed. They all looked at Will as he entered with Marine in his arms. Carrie and Elizabeth went up to him first with worry on their faces.

"Will! What happened to Marine?"

"Is she all right?"

"She has a few cuts and bruises on her hands." He looked down at Marine and saw that she had fallen asleep. "And tired mostly. But who wouldn't be after facing a storm and a snake and at the same time recovering from injuries and a high fever just three days ago?"

"What was she doing?" Carrie asked. "Was she the one who fired the canon?"

"Yes, unless someone else was with her. She and I were at the main deck while the snake was attacking the ship. It tilted to the right so we slid to the edge and were left hanging by the railings. Then all of a sudden she made me let go of her. She went below deck by falling at the side of the hull and going through one of the openings."

"That's insane! What in the world drove her to do such a thing?" Cornelius cried. He looked at Marine who was already fast asleep in Will's arms and frowned. "She's just as reckless as her father was..."

"Will please take her to Jack's cabin. If it's alright with you of course." Elizabeth said, looking at Jack in question. The pirate shrugged and waved his right hand at them, signaling them to go ahead. Will, Elizabeth and Carrie moved up the stairs and headed for Jack's cabin while the three remaining men stayed in the galley. Jones was looking at a playing card in his hand and was flicking it with his wrist repeatedly; a trick he learned through the profession he took.

"Well now that the snake has stopped leading us to wherever it was supposed to lead us to, how do we know where we are?"

"We'll wait for the storm to pass. It's too dark to try and figure out our current coordinates." Jack replied. Cornelius was staring at the floor in deep thought then he looked at Jack.

"I don't like this Jack. I have heard a lot of rumors concerning the Sharpshooter Marine clone and her control over a sea snake. If the rumors are true, then she's a lot closer to us than we think. We have to shake her off, or distract her with something else. Or all our hopes of gaining an advantage over her is finished."

"There's nothing we can do about that as of now." Jack said. "The snake's attack on us has taken a lot of our strength away. Our first priority is to replenish our stocks, repair the damages on the ship, and get us more men to partake in this voyage. Savvy?" He finished.

"Aye." Cornelius said with a small, resigned nod. Jack looked at Cornelius first, then at Jones. When he was sure that the two had asked all of their questions, he turned around and began walking away.

"Well I'll be going back to the helm then. Lots of captain-y things to do. The Pearl would be lost without its dashing captain by her side." A grin slowly formed on Cornelius' face as he heard the last bit of Jack's monologue. "...Of all the goddamn things the forces could to do me, why did they have to prolong Norry's stay on the Pearl? And I really wanted to send him to a cannibal-inhabited island too..."

* * *

Elizabeth stretched out her limbs and yawned as the sunlight greeted her. The sky was a clear blue; there was no more sign of the dark clouds of the storm. In the daylight, the ship looked a lot more wrecked. Pieces of shattered wood were scattered all over the deck and were being cleaned up by some of the crew. Parts of the railings had been destroyed when the snake slammed its large tail at it. All of the sails seemed in tact to her relief. There was a good wind blowing that morning and they needed all the help they can get in landing on a safe, pirate-friendly land. She looked around more and found her husband standing at the bow and watching the ship cut the surface of the sea in two. 

She made her way to him, excusing herself from men who were cleaning up, and wrapped her arms around him. Will looked over his shoulder and smiled when he saw Elizabeth. He turned around to face her and gave her a long and deep kiss.

"Good morning Mrs. Turner." He said. Elizabeth's face glowed with delight at hearing her new name.

"Good morning Mr. Turner." She replied. She brushed the strands of hair that fell in front of Will's face and gave him a light kiss on the cheek before leaning against his chest. Will placed his arms around her waist and enjoyed the peace and quiet they were sharing with each other. Elizabeth looked back at the sea in deep thought. Will saw a frown grow on Elizabeth's face and tilted her head to face him.

"Is something wrong?" He asked worriedly. Elizabeth shook her head.

"It's nothing important."

"Tell me." Will replied as he played with a strand of her blond hair. "Please." Elizabeth sighed as she placed her head against his chest again. She could feel his warmth flood through her body and hear his heart beat steadily.

"I was just thinking about how unfair I was to you. I know how rash I can be when it comes to making decisions. I don't always think of what others might feel, or what consequences my actions have on me and those around me. More specifically, I was thinking about my decision to join in this journey; if what I did was right or not." She placed a finger on Will's lips before he could open his mouth. "Don't tell me that it wasn't my fault or that I was right. I chose this decision and I have no regrets about that. But I can't help but think about how you must feel about all this. I agreed to joining Jack and Marine and expected you to come. It was wrong for me to do so and I apologize for it." Will held her hand while placing his free hand on her cheek and smiled.

"You don't have to apologize for anything Elizabeth. You know that I would go with you to the ends of the world if it meant I could be with you all the time. I admit that I didn't agree to all this in the beginning. I was worried about what might happen to you. I didn't want to see you get hurt or fall into danger again. But nonetheless, I think that you made the right decision. We must help Marine with her problem as much as we can. She deserves that much from us after she helped us in our own time of need." He said. All of a sudden, a hand moved in front of the couple and pinched Will's cheeks.

"Awww I didn't know you cared about me that much Will! I'm touched." Will was taken aback and simply stared at Marine as she grinned back at Will. When Marine moved to hug Elizabeth, he placed a hand on his cheek and rubbed it.

"Marine! Are you sure you're well enough to be walking about?" Elizabeth asked when they pulled apart.

"Of course I am! Don't take me for a weakling Liz. I might be weaker, but that doesn't mean I'll fall down and get sick everytime something happens to me. And besides, I feel guilty for not helping out with the workload ever since we left Port Royal. I think Sparrow has grown even more upset with me when he found out about the two shutters I destroyed below deck."

"He can't blame you for those. You were doing it for the safety of everyone on the ship." Will argued.

"Nevertheless, I still feel like a sack of useless junk. I need to do something. Anything at all." She raised a hand and caught a mop that was thrown at her just in time. The three looked to the side and saw Jones standing there with a grin on his face.

"You could start by doing my share of the work. Imagine me, a guest on this ship, doing more work than a crewmember." Marine returned a similar grin as she threw back the mop at him.

"You're more freeloader than guest Jones. That ought to be punishment enough for you. And besides, Sparrow already gave me a chore to do." She said as she took out a piece of parchment from her pocket. She showed this to both Will and Elizabeth who looked at it curiously.

"It's a list of ingredients and ammunition. Did Jack write this?" Will asked.

"I didn't know he could write." Elizabeth said in surprise.

"He wrote that while I was standing behind him so I can assure you both that it's authentic. Actually I didn't believe it myself until he gave it to me. And his writing's not half bad." Marine commented as she took the parchment from Will's hands. "And there you have it. As soon as we make port on some land, I'm in charge of restocking our ship with necessities from the town. It's nice to do something like a little grocery shopping when all you've been doing on this ship is hard labor."

"I'll accompany you to the town." Elizabeth offered. "It would be nice to go around the market and look around." Marine smiled and nodded in agreement.

"Well you don't need to wait any longer." Jones told them as he pointed ahead of the ship with his free hand. "There's land in sight over there."


	19. Girl's Day Out

**AN: **Hey guys! Many thanks to those who reviewed me! Looks like I can still upload one more chapter before christmas arrives. Hehehe So another Merry Christmas Greeting to you all! Enjoy the latest chapter and read and review when you can!

* * *

_**"Although this is a pirate-friendly town, it is also a dangerous town because of it. Three women walking through the streets with a bag of gold in their possession is a very tempting and easy target for mindless thugs." - Cornelius Gashnet**_

**Chapter 19 - Girls' Day Out**

"So while me and the rest of the crew go about getting my Pearl back in tip-top shape, you and the rest of the women shall head for town and bring the list of things I need." Jack explained as he paced before the three women standing in a straight line. After Jack had made sure that the island was pirate-friendly, he moved the ship to the dock and called all of the men on his ship to the deck. Carrie looked at the parchment that Marine held out to her and raised an eyebrow at Jack.

"You know how to write?" That made the pirate stop his movements. He turned his head to face her and narrowed his eyes with annoyance.

"Of course I know how to write! If I didn't Marine would have to be forced to remember everything that I wanted her to buy." While Jack spoke, Marine bit her lip and placed a hand to her mouth, pretending that she was coughing to hide her laughter. She stopped when she heard Jack speak of her.

"By your tone, it seems to me that you're underestimating my abilities in memorization Sparrow." Marine said with a frown. Jack grinned and placed an arm around her, which she immediately jerked away.

"I wasn't doing anything of the sort love! Now here's a bag of my lovely shiny treasures. Go on and start spending as much money on important things as you think we need." He said as he placed his brown, dirty bag of gold coins on Marine's hand and held her shoulders to steer her to the plank and onto the docks. Marine tried to get a word in but Jack had maneuvered her all the way to the end of the port and had begun walking back to his ship when she turned around. Elizabeth and Carrie were right behind Jack while the female pirate was being led away and placed comforting hands on her shoulders.

"Don't worry Marine. We'll get our revenge on Jack." Carrie said. Marine looked at her with a grin so mischievous that Carrie was worried about what the other woman was thinking of.

"Oh don't think I won't do that Carrie. If Jack Sparrow wants us to spend his gold then I won't be one to complain. I'm going to enjoy this." She said as she tossed the bag of gold coins in her hand casually. "So ladies, where should we begin our little shopping escapade?"

While the ladies were discussing their plans for that morning, Jack and Will were busy preparing the crew for a repairing session on the Black Pearl. Planks of wood, nails, hammers and other carpentering tools were being carried and dropped onto the deck. Will, Cornelius and Jones were helping out Jack just like the rest of the crew. Jones walked down the gangplank and reveled in the feel of the wooden dock.

"Ahh It feels so good to be back on unmoving, solid ground." He looked up at Jack who was standing on the ship's railing and looking around with an air of command. "I don't understand how you can stand being on that same boat for weeks, much less months." Jack looked down at him. He grabbed a rope and swung down in front of Jones.

"I'm a man of the sea, mate. My heart lies with her and me Black Pearl-" Then he narrowed his eyes and poked a finger at Jones' chest. "Which is not what you would call a boat. My Black Pearl is a magnificent ship; nothing at all like the small, common things you see here. You should keep that in mind before insulting my pride and joy." Jones raised both his hands up in surrender.

"Aye, aye a ship. You know I know nothing about ships and boats and sailing them. I could care less about what they're called." Before Jack could have the chance to lecture Jones about all modes of transportation on water, Cornelius walked up to Jack.

"Jack, I think we should have sent someone to go with the girls." He began. "Although this is a pirate-friendly town, it is also a dangerous town because of it. Three women walking through the streets with a bag of gold in their possession is a very tempting and easy target for mindless thugs."

"You have nothing to worry about Cornelius." Jack said as he placed a hand on his shoulder and patted it reassuringly. "I'm sure they won't be walking about and showing off that bag of gold. And we have Sharpshooter Marine on our side. I'm sure she'll be capable of fighting against whoever it is that decides to go near them."

"Even if said pirate has lost all of her strength and skill as a fighter?" Will said as he came up behind them to join in their conversation. Jack's confident face slowly disappeared as what Will said registered in his mind. "In case you have forgotten Jack, the Marine we know now isn't as strong as she was before. She could probably take on one man, but what if they were to take on more?" The blacksmith continued. Jack sighed, knowing that Will was right. He looked at Jones and pointed at him.

"You are to follow them, inconspicuously mind you, and help them out when they need it." He said. Jones smiled in reply.

"Anything to get out of helping with the repairs. You have nothing to worry about. The three ladies shall be watched out for as long as I could keep up with them." He nodded to Will and Cornelius then gave one last grin at Jack before walking away from the port and heading into the busy town. The three men watched him disappear in the sea of people and looked at each other.

"There. Are ye satisfied William?" Jack asked. Will frowned at him.

"Can Jones really help Marine and the other women when the need arises?"

"Of course he can! He didn't survive being a thief by simply running away from the Royal Guards. He can handle himself in a fight just as good as you or I can." Jack told Will. "So if there's nothing else we need to discuss, I say we start fixing my beloved Pearl. That way, when the ladies do encounter some trouble and Jones is incapable of controlling said trouble, we may use the Pearl as our escape to trouble mentioned." He moved back to his ship while shouting orders at his crew. Then he gestured for Will and Cornelius to follow. With no choice but to believe Jack, the two men walked behind him and moved to help the crew repair the ship.

* * *

Carrie enjoyed this 'girl time' with Marine and Elizabeth. Although Marine didn't like shopping, she liked bonding with women. And despite the century gap between them, both modern women and the victorian woman still found a lot of things in common with each other. They walked about town buying food and the like for the ship and paying men to carry them back to the Pearl. Marine was very lax with how much they were supposed to spend; she was still pissed off at the way Jack sent them off on their 'errand'. As soon as everything they needed was bought and sent to the ship, they began to look around clothes, accessories and other 'necessary' things.

"Marine, I don't think this is a good idea." Elizabeth began as the three women stood inside the blacksmith's shop, watching the owner sharpen Marine's sword and all the daggers she possessed. "Jack said to spend his money on important things."

"And that's exactly what we're doing. Sparrow specifically told us to spend as much money on important things as we think we need." Marine countered. "Sharpening my blades are important too! If we're going to be continuously getting into fights then I would have an easier time with sharpened blades than dull ones." As she looked at the blacksmith's work, she added, "Maybe I should buy a few things to relieve my time on the Black Pearl when there's nothing to do. It wouldn't do well for the ship if it had a lazy crew on board. And we need to get you and Carrie some dresses and jewelries. You never know when we might need to...shall we say, _distract_ men from our plans and like. What do you think Mrs. Turner?" Elizabeth smiled as she nodded and looked at the third woman in their party.

"I think it's a wonderful idea Miss Nelee! Certainly, the things we are purchasing are just as important as the things we bought for the Black Pearl. Don't you think so Miss Lockheart?" Carrie stepped up between both women and placed an arm on each of their shoulder.

"I say that as soon as our lovely lady pirate gets her important, sharpened blades, we head straight to a tailor's shop and find ourselves a fitting dress for distraction." Before they could go further with the idea, they heard someone coming into the shop from the main room. All three women looked to the entrance and saw someone walking towards them. A large hat sat perched on top of the person's head and, when it was taken off, revealed a plain yellowish bandana wrapped around a head with long brown locks. The dark skinned woman looked at the three and smiled brightly at two of them.

"Why if it isn't Miss Swann and Sharpshooter Marine! I never thought I'd see the two of you after everything that's happened. And in a blacksmith's shop too."

"Actually, it's Mrs. Turner now, AnaMaria. It's so good to see you again after all this time." Elizabeth pointed out with a big smile on her face. She shook hands with her after Marine did. AnaMaria blinked then chuckled and patted her shoulder in a friendly gesture.

"Ah so the two of you have already given your vows and bonded yourselves to each other for all eternity. Congratulations. And I wish you both luck in that." She turned to Marine and punched her arm lightly. "As for you, you left Jack all alone back at Port Royal to hang. The crew was expectin' you and the Captain to appear when we pulled the rope. We tried to ask Jack but he wouldn't say a word about it. So why did you leave him alone and where have you been all this time?" She asked suspiciously. Marine grimaced and scratched the back of her head as she spoke.

"Er...well you see AnaMaria, back at Port Royal...Sparrow and I were at the cells and...well this funny thing happened and...by the way, I'd like you to meet my good friend Carrie Lockheart." She said as she held Carrie's shoulder and moved her forward. Carrie of course knew who AnaMaria was and a slight pinch on the arm from Marine reminded her of it. AnaMaria gave a curt nod to her then placed her attention back on Marine. The female pirate stepped back at the intimidating glare she got from the former woman.

"Don't go changing the subject! I swear you're as just as bad as Jack at times. Answer my question or I'm going to force it out of you!" AnaMaria threatened.

"Really now, you wouldn't do that to someone you haven't met for..." Marine looked up at the ceiling as she computed silently in her mind. "At least two months. Oh wow. It's been that long already? We should spend this day reaquainting ourselves with each other. How's about accompanying us in our little trip to spend as much gold Sparrow possesses as we can? If we're lucky, we might get more than we bargained for." She suggested, taking out the bag of gold and shaking it for emphasis. AnaMaria's eyes twinkled as she crossed her arms over her chest.

"Jack's gold ye say? And spend it as much as we can? Well I would be happy to assist you in your trip. Let me begin by using it to sharpen my own blades." She turned her gaze to the man who was still working on some of Marine's blades. She took out her sword and held it out to the him. "Sharpen these as well. They'll be paid for together with the ones you're working on." The man looked at the four women for a long while, eyes glowing brightly. Then he placed his tools down on the anvil and wiped his hands on the dirty white apron he wore.

"I'll work on 'em right away miss. Just let me get a few more tools from me shed first. I'll be right back." He told them. Then with a curt nod he left his shop through the back door. AnaMaria shrugged and held her sword in her hand patiently. Marine moved to the blacksmith's work and inspected her sword, which was the first one he finished.

"Honestly I would have asked Will to do these for me, but I figured since we're spending someone else's money that we ought to make use of it as much as we can." Marine said. "But judging from the other swords here, this blacksmith's not half-bad. Here, take a look at this one Elizabeth." She passed a sword that was hanging on display to the woman she spoke to. "If you want, we can buy that for you." Elizabeth held onto the sword and pursed her lips in thought.

"Well...I wouldn't mind having something to defend myself with. And this sword is just as light as the ones Will let me practice on."

"And how about you Carrie? You might as well get one too since you're going to be hanging around me for much longer. I can teach you how to defend yourself with it." Marine suggested as she passed one to Carrie. The other woman took it with the eagerness of a first-timer.

"You're really going to teach me how to use a sword?" She asked excitedly. Marine smiled and quickly glanced at AnaMaria who gave her a nod of the head.

"Of course I will. In fact, we can start our lessons now. Here's how you do a proper and effective thrust. First, we pretend I'm fighting with someone." Marine held up her sword and mocked a battle against an invisible enemy. Carrie laughed while Elizabeth tried not to in an effort to be polite.

"Marine is that truly necessary? You look odd fighting there by yourself." Elizabeth said.

"Of course it is." Marine replied. "It's for better visualization. And if you really have a good imagination, it can pass for a little simulation." Both Elizabeth and AnaMaria raised eyebrows at her use of words. Carrie understood her best friend and chuckled to herself. "Moving on with my lesson," The female pirate continued. "You must make sure that your movements are short and quick. Make them too random and too far apart and you'll find yourself falling out of balance and easy to catch off-guard. As soon as you see an opening from your opponent strike fast and strike hard!" Marine was apparently fighting with someone who was just as good with swords. She had moved to the back door, which was a few meters away from her previous spot. She made grunting noises and soft fighting cries as she continued fighting with her 'opponent'. She reminded Carrie of a little kid pretending to be a pirate or a sword fighter in general. Marine paid no attention to how ridiculous she looked and went on.

"Thrusting is both an advantage and a disadvantage in fighting, depending on how you look at it. Supposing my opponent tried to thrust his sword at me and I evaded it, he would lose his balance and be caught off-guard for at least a few seconds. Even a few seconds can shift the balance of the fight; depending on how you use it." Marine jumped back and pretended to block something with her sword. She had moved outside through the back door and spoke quickly as her hands did a small flourish before thrusting to her right. "So thrusting becomes a disadvantage. But if you have the upper hand and caught your opponent off guard first," A loud cry of pain reached their ears. Marine's lips curled to a smile as she retracted her sword, revealing drops of blood. "The problem, becomes the solution."

Both Carrie and Elizabeth were in shock as a man fell forward from the spot where Marine had thrusted her sword through. They recognized it as the blacksmith from earlier and looked up worriedly as they saw more men making their way to the shop. Marine and AnaMaria moved together with speed and blocked the entrance to the shop while brandishing their swords. There were about five men who appeared. Each man was dressed in dirty, shabby clothes; it spoke much of what they wanted with them.

"Hand over all your gold and we might consider letting you lassies go unharmed." One of them said. Marine looked at AnaMaria knowingly and spoke to the two other women in their party.

"Carrie. Elizabeth. Hold on to those and keep a watchful eye on things." She ordered. She didn't bother looking at them, for she knew they were quick to catch on with what was happening and would follow her. And with that, both she and AnaMaria charged ahead.

* * *

Jones whistled a random, happy tune as he made his way through the market. His hands were inside the pockets of his pants, already filled with bits of gold and trinkets that he snatched at random people in the crowd. His eyes continued to wander around groups of people; inspecting their things specifically. He wasn't too worried about Marine and the other women. He had convinced himself that they didn't need his help when they get into trouble. They were far better fighters than he was after all. 

His thoughts were interrupted when he heard shouting and clashing of metal against metal. He looked at one of the houses and widened his eyes in surprise when he saw a man being thrown out. He watched as the man wiped blood that dripped down the side of his lip then moved to go back into the house. He looked at the sign that was hanging above the door and was half-amused to find that it wasn't a tavern or an inn but a blacksmith's shop. He stepped back into one of the corners of the neighboring houses and saw two men running away in fear a few minutes later. They rushed past him and hid themselves in the crowd at the market. This was followed by four women coming out of the shop bearing swords. He chuckled as he recognized three of them. Certainly Will and the others were worrying too much about the women when clearly they could handle themselves well.

"They don't need me hanging around them and keeping an eye on them. I might even ruin their little fun because of it." He told himself. And with that, he turned around the opposite direction and headed for a tavern for an early drink. Although it wasn't Tortuga, there were still taverns filled with the less sophisticated kind of people. He entered one of these and relished on the familiar atmosphere. There was the smell of rum, the smell of sweat and the salty sea. There was the sound of men shouting, laughing and arguing with each other about who cheated or who didn't pay their debts. Jones gave a happy sigh and made his way to the counter to order himself a drink.

With the sun still high up in the sky, the tavern was less rowdy and less noisy. Jones could hear bits and pieces of conversation from the other patrons, especially those nearest to him. He half-listened to these as he relaxed on his seat. Jones caught a glass that slided towards him by the man behind the counter and drank half of the contents eagerly. It had been quite a while since he last tasted rum. The stock back at the Pearl had depleted; though he wondered how Jack kept appearing with bottles in his hands even when they were all out.

"So it was her? Are you sure?"

"Aye lass. T'was her together with three other lasses. One had blond hair, the other was dark skinned and the last had black hair. The last two were the ones who had the experience with swords. And the other looks just like ya. She yer twin or something?" Jones widened his eyes but he fought hard not to turn around quickly else he would be caught eavesdropping. His ears strained to listen to the conversation longer as he pretended to take another sip of his drink.

"Something like that. The lass has stolen something from me and I want it back. Do you know where she went?"

"No. I was too busy trying to run away from the other two women to look at where they were headed at." Jones pretended to drop a gold coin on the floor and bent to pick it up, all the while glancing discreetly to his side where he conversation was being held. The man had a small cut on the side of his lip and he realized that he was looking at the same man who he first saw being thrown out of the blacksmith's shop half an hour ago. The other was a woman and a shiver of fear crawled up his spine as he realized he was looking at a woman with Carrie Lockheart's face. The young blond haired woman frowned at the other man's reply and tossed a coin at him, which the other caught with greedy eagerness. She turned around and regarded some of the men who were sitting on chairs.

"I want you to search every nook and cranny for those four women. Find them then kill them. But bring the look-alike to me alive. I shall deal with her personally." She told them. At least 7 large and rugged men stood up and followed behind her.

Jones watched Carrie's clone walk out of the tavern and disappear into the streets. After cursing silently to himself for the sudden interruption in his lovely trip on land, he downed the last drops of his drink, paid the man behind the counter, and ran as fast as he could back to the Black Pearl. There was no telling how long he had to warn everyone and how long it would take the crew to prepare before the clone got a hold of the women. He ran as fast as his legs could carry him and was barely breathing when he arrived at the docks. The first person he saw was Gibbs, who was bringing in another bundle of wooden planks for the ship. Jones opened his mouth and tried to warn the first mate; to tell him that there was trouble brewing. But all he could do was draw deep, hoarse, ragged breaths and stand there with his hands on his knees.

"Calm down lad. What's with all the rush? You look like you've seen a ghost." The older man said as he dropped the things he carried and helped Jones keep his balance.

"Worse." Jones managed to say as he continued filling his lungs with sweet oxygen. "Get. Jack. Quick." Gibbs saw the fear and worry in Jones' eyes and nodded, leaving the man to stand on his own while he rushed up onto the deck of the Black Pearl, shouting for the Captain.

"Jack! Jack where in hell's blazes are ye?!" He continued looking around until he found Jack talking with Will below deck, at the place where the canons were kept in. They were repairing the windows that had broken off during the storm and Marine's solo fight with the sea snake. "Captain! Jones is here and he wants to speak to you. Now." Gibbs added when Jack looked back at Will casually. The pirate frowned at his first mate then after heaving a heavy sigh, stood up from his spot and followed Gibbs up the stairs. Will dropped the tools they were using and moved to go up as well. When Jack took the last steps on the stairs, Jones came up and looked at Jack worriedly.

"Jack. We've got a problem."

"Aye, that we do mate." Jack replied. Jones stopped and raised an eyebrow at the other man. "Although the goods that Marine has bought from town arrived a few minutes ago and are now complete, the repairs are taking longer than I expected them to. We'll have to stay here for a few more hours or so." That brought even more panic to the thief's face.

"We can't leave?!"

"What's the matter Jones?" Will asked worriedly. "Where is Elizabeth and the others?" Jones looked at Will and sighed.

"They're safe the last time I checked. But if we don't get to them fast, they'll all be dead on the ground. I was at the tavern having a drink when I heard a conversation from two people. One of them was Carrie's clone. Fortunately, she hasn't met with Marine's clone yet and they have no idea where the women are. But she has seven men making a thorough search around town even as we speak." The relaxed expression on Jack's face disappeared as he realized the weight of what was happening.

"Oh bugger."

* * *

"Ahh nothing like a bit of pirating on land." Marine began as she and the rest of the women in their party walked side by side. They strutted about the streets, three of them with shiny and brand new swords on the side of their hips. 

"Pirating? What are you talking about?" Carrie asked. "We were attacked by a group of men who wanted our money! That wasn't pirating, that was robbing." The two pirate women looked at each other with a knowing grin before turning to their less experienced friends.

"In their eyes perhaps. But in our eyes - in a pirate's eye - well, it's not really what you'd call a trick, but depending on the person you're dealing with, it is known to be very effective and very useful." Marine began as they stopped by a fruit stand. She took an apple, invited the others to do the same, then tossed a few coins to the owner in payment. "The pirates on my father's crew told me stories about it. First you go to a blacksmith's shop, ask the man to sharpen your blades or make some blades for yourself. Then after a while you begin to show the man a lot of coins. If the man's a greedy ass, he'll take note of it. If you're a woman or a seemingly weak man, you'll surely catch his attention on it. Afterwards he would call his friends to assist him or tries to attack you on his own. All you gotta do is beat up every single one of them and walk away with a sharpened sword, a few additional blades, and your money in tact. I was surprised to find that AnaMaria knew of it as well at the moment I shook that bag of gold." AnaMaria laughed and slapped the other woman's back jovially.

_(note: What Marine explained is in no way true...well at least that's what I think. It's just something that I made up just so you guys know. If it is in any way true then I do not hold claim for the idea.)_

"Know it? All the pirate women that ever existed have done it more than once in their lives! It's a female pirate's best trick." The laughter died and was replaced with a kind of recollection. "It's been a while since I've done pirating myself." AnaMaria replied with a slight dreamy gaze in her eyes. Marine and Elizabeth looked at her in curiosity.

"What have you been doing all this time then?" The latter woman asked.

"Well, after Jack gave me enough money to get my own ship, I decided to take a break from all the action and adventure that a pirate is entailed to. I've been working as an honest to goodness merchant, believe it or not." The dark skinned woman said, earning a chuckle from Marine. She replied to the other woman and punched her arm. "'Tis not nice to make fun of others' profession." Marine gave her an innocent grin which didn't seem innocent at all.

"And what gave you the idea that I was?"

"But doesn't that mean you have to deal with pirates trying to steal your goods?" Carrie asked her, interrupting their little banter. AnaMaria smiled at her and shrugged.

"Perhaps. But I've gotten myself a crew from Tortuga; all of which wanted to have a temporary change of roles like myself. They're all able-bodied and are skilled enough to defend themselves during a raid. And we did get the chance to fight a few ships on our voyages. As you can see, we're doing fine on our own."

"What would happen if Jack was the pirate who tried to plunder your loot?" At this a mischievous, dangerous smile grazed the dark skinned woman's face.

"Ah, if Jack were to raid my ship I would kick his ass and show the world that Captain Jack Sparrow is not all that great." This earned her a laugh from the rest of the women.

"Then lucky for Jack that he didn't encounter your merchant ship." Carrie said while she continued to laugh.

"Yeah...lucky Jack." AnaMaria murmured. When Marine recovered from her small fit, she looked at AnaMaria knowingly. The other woman smirked and nodded in understanding as well. The two women knew that if it ever came to that, Jack would be a hard man to fight against. There would be no telling who will win the battle, but there was a very large chance that it would be the daft and unpredictable pirate. They didn't need to tell him that of course.

The four women passed by a bookstore which Marine immediately entered. The rest followed and began browsing through the shelves of books lined up side by side and across each other. They saw Marine looking up at a certain selection and stayed by her side. "So, what have you been doing since the last time we met each other?" AnaMaria asked her. Marine stopped her search to give her a mysterious grin.

"Oh some of this, some of that. Nothing special really." She replied as she remembered going back to her own world then suddenly being transported back to the world of Pirates. "Just the usual; avoiding the Royal Navy, pissing Sparrow and driving him to a higher state of insanity and such."

"Speaking of which, when did you and Jack get back together and why on earth would he take you as his crew when you deserted him back at Port Royal?" AnaMaria asked. Marine was taking out one of the books from the shelf when AnaMaria asked her question and winced as she looked at the other woman.

"Deserting him is such a cruel way to say it. I didn't really desert him as you said I did. And about him taking me as his crew...it's complicated."

"Lass, everything's complicated when it comes to Jack Sparrow." Marine laughed.

"Couldn't agrue with that. But moving on with what I've said, he understood my situation then and the reason why I left him alone that day. We've made amends and such - he didn't harbor any bad feelings against me on that matter - and after we encountered a pressing problem that needed both of our attentions, we decided that working together would be better than working solo for the same goal. And it's been nothing but trouble and fighting after that." Marine said. She moved to the counter, where a man began listing the things Marine was going to buy.

"Sounds fun." AnaMaria muttered. Marine smirked at the sarcasm dripping together with what was said.

"What about you AnaMaria? Aside from being a honest merchant is there nothing interesting happening in your life?" Elizabeth asked. AnaMaria turned her attention on the other woman and shrugged.

"Depends on how you define 'interesting'. Interesting in terms of an adventurous life on sea, is quite different from interesting in terms of being on one of Jack Sparrow's ventures for example." AnaMaria explained.

"And mine for that matter." Marine muttered. She then recalled the situation they were in and looked at the dark skinned woman worriedly. "AnaMaria, as much as I've missed seeing you and all that, now's not really a good time to hang around with us if it's a less adventurous and dangerous life you're looking for." She began. "We shouldn't stay with you any longer than necessary." Elizabeth looked at Marine in surprise then after the female pirate spoke, looked at AnaMaria and nodded in agreement.

"What's wrong? Are you in danger or something? Is Jack involved in this?" Marine took the bag filled with the things she bought and walked out of the store together with the other women.

"Uh...kind of. It's a really long story and I don't think you'd like it if we told everything to you in full speed." Marine explained. "All you need to know is we're being hunted down by someone and that we're trying to head for a place to get something to counter them with." AnaMaria narrowed her eyes at Marine and poked her shoulder with her finger.

"If you think something like that is going to intimidate me then you don't know me at all! I've fought the same things you have and gone through the same things you did. I won't be daunted just because someone is trying to go after you."

"Oh then you don't mind if we do." A voice spoke behind them. All four women turned around, three of which unsheathed swords. Seven dirty and ragged men surrounded them with sinsiter looks on their faces and their blades aimed at them. As Marine looked around, she noticed that most of the other innocent bystanders had run away at the sight of the thugs. She stepped up in front of the other women, tossed her package of newly bought books to where they would be untouched, and held out her arms to either side with a sword on one hand.

"Fellows, citizens. Let's not resort to voilence when we can have a peaceful and honest negotiation like the mature adults that we are. What say you to that?"

"Get them!" One of the men shouted. And with a loud battle cry all seven charged towards them. Marine and AnaMaria were the first ones to come into contact with the men. Blades crashed against each other and the sound of metal against metal filled the street. It was incredibly noisy; there was no attempt to hide the fact that they were fighting. Elizabeth decided to voice out her thoughts as she kicked one of the men away from her.

"Why isn't there anyone coming to stop us or help us? Surely there are some authoratative men even in a pirate-friendly town such as this one." She said.

"I don't know." Marine replied as she turned around to dodge a thrust from an attacker. "But even if there were, do you think they'd bother coming into the part of town where pirates, thieves, thugs, criminals and the like roam about freely to do patrols?"

"I guess not." AnaMaria punched one of the men on the face then looked at the other female pirate.

"What an incredible stroke of luck." She said in sarcasm.

"You don't know the half of it." Marine replied as she moved close to AnaMaria and stood back to back with her. "I'm sorry that you're forced to fight with us again." They held each other's arm and twirled around to parry with their two opponents.

"No worries Marine. It's good to have a bit of exercise from time to time." The dark skinned woman replied before crouching down and moving away from her attacker. Marine stepped back from her fight for a quick break and ended up bumping into Carrie who was doing her best to fight with one of the thugs.

"Guess you're not cut out to be a Jack Sparrow, Vanessa." Carrie said in a joking manner. Marine pushed Carrie's head down and struck her opponent through the heart before turning around and blocking a strike from her own opponent.

"Not funny." Marine grumbled before charging into another battle.


	20. Chaotic Split Up

**AN: **Thanks to those who have reviewed me. I appreciate your time in doing so. And for those who have waited, here is the next chapter to The Other Aztec Treasure. Things are about to get heated up so sit back and enjoy!

* * *

_**"If you have two different people after you, you ought to go separately and discuss where you'll meet again." - AnaMaria**_

**Chapter 20 - Chaotic Split Up**

Jack and a few hand-picked men from his crew ran through the streets together in search of the only three women part of the crew. It consisted of Jack, Will, Cornelius, Jones and two more pirates. While they went into town, Gibbs as first mate was to continue the repairs on the Pearl so that they could get the chance to escape. They went around asking people if they have seen Marine and the others and got a lot of answers and directions to where they had walked off to. So far they've gone through the market and were headed into the less crowded part of that section of the town. Jack grumbled as he calculated just how much the women had spent his gold on.

"When I get my hands on that woman I'll..."

"Save your sermons for later. Judging from the people running away, I'd guess that the clone's men have already found the women." Cornelius said as he pointed at a direction where a lot of people were running away from. The group made their way there and found not three, but four women fighting. Three of the men were down but a remaining four were still standing. Jack and Cornelius quickly took out their pistols and together they aimed at the fight and fired the trigger. One man fell down as a result. This caught the fighter's attention as they stopped and looked at where the newcomers were. Elizabeth smiled brightly and sighed in relief when she saw who it was.

"Will!"

"Elizabeth!"

"Cornelius! Jones! What are you guys doing here?"

"Marine! I demand an explanation for all the unnecessary spending you've done."

"AnaMaria? Is that you?"

"Jack Sparrow. It's been a while."

"That's Captain to you, love. Captain Jack Sparrow." Jack replied to AnaMaria with a lopsided grin. The other woman rolled her eyes in return. Marine took this moment of surprise and stabbed another man with her sword.

"Not that I hate having these conversations and all, but why don't you boys come over here and help out?" Marine asked rhetorically. Before they could get back to fighting though, the two remaining men had turned their backs on them and were running away as quickly as they could. Jack grinned at Marine then pretended to look disappointed.

"Alas as much as I want to help you love, the two men have run away from our grasp." Carrie interrupted their cheerful moment with a look of worry.

"They'll most likely speak to Marine and get her to send more men after us. We have to get away from here right now!"

"Actually, it isn't Marine who sent those men." Jones commented. Elizabeth, Carrie and Marine looked at him in confusion. "It was actually her clone who's doing all this." Jones pointed at Carrie who stood there in stunned silence. "And based on the conversation I overheard back at the tavern, she hasn't met Marine's clone yet."

"What?! Carrie's clone is here?" Marine cried in surprise. "Damn this is even more troubling than I thought." She muttered. "We can't escape now. We have to catch her and take her with us. If we let her go then it would only give my clone the opportunity to find her and work together with her."

"Easier said than done love." Jack pointed out. "We have no idea where she is and we have no way of knowing how much men she has in control. If we're not too careful, we'll be greatly outnumbered and subdued within minutes of contact with them."

"So what do we do?" Carrie asked to no one in particular.

"Well we could search for her now and risk the chances of being outnumbered. We can get the rest of the crew to fight alongside us. Or we can run away and hope to God that she doesn't meet up with my clone." Marine mentioned as she held up one finger for every option she suggested. "Take your pick or think of something else."

"Captain! Captain!" A voice cried out. The whole group turned around and saw Carter headed towards them in a hurry. Jack saw the young pirate making his way towards them with a panicked face and couldn't help but groan. Whatever his news was Jack was sure that it wasn't a good one. The young man stopped when he was a few feet away from his captain and struggled to catch his breath. But as he did, he spoke and bits of words and phrases reached everyone's ears.

"Gibbs said...saw a ship...captain looked like Marine...headed this way..." Marine cursed a lot more colorful words under her breath as they heard this piece of news. She looked at Jack.

"Any chances to actually have the time to catch the other clone is gone now that we have my own clone to deal with. You're the captain of your own ship. What should we do?" She asked. The pirate grumbled as he fiddled with the beads and trinkets that adorned his head and his goatee. But to their surprise, it was AnaMaria who gave a suggestion.

"If you have two different people after you, you ought to go separately and discuss where you'll meet again. I still have my own ship and my own crew. I'll guarantee you passage to wherever it is you plan on going to." She said in earnest. Marine and Jack looked at each other then at the rest who considered AnaMaria's offer as well.

"It's a better chance than the ones we have now." Will began. "Marine can go on one ship and Carrie on the other. This way there's still a chance that they won't be caught together." Jack looked at Carter who had slowly recovered from his previous run.

"Carter. What's the report on the Black Pearl?"

"Ready to set sail on your command captain!"

"Ah good work. That makes things a lot better. Then here's our plan; Lizzie, the whelp, Cornelius and Carrie will go together with AnaMaria whilst Jones, Marine and I will stay with the Pearl. Cornelius can give me the coordinates to the location of the cursed Aztec Treasure. And it is there where we shall see each other again."

"Getting the coordinates is not necessary." Marine replied with a smug grin on her face. "Cornelius gave me the location to the cursed treasure just as we departed Port Royal. So I'll be doing the navigating on your ship Sparrow." She finished. Jack frowned slightly, but quickly gave in and nodded.

"All right, it's settled then. AnaMaria, I humbly thank you for your assistance in our voyage. But don't expect me to be giving you any form of payment or reward for it." He pointed out. AnaMaria smirked in reply.

"Aye, Jack. I won't be asking for something in return. But you and Marine will owe me a big favor for this and I will collect that in due time." At this Jack only gave a soft grunt of acknowledgment while Marine chuckled.

"I'll ruin Sparrow's time on the ship with me by reminding him of it every single day. Take care of yourselves and see you in a few months." She said. The others said the same thing as they bid their own versions of goodbyes. Carrie walked up lastly to the female pirate and, with tears in her eyes, gave Marine a bone-crushing hug. Marine didn't do anything to stop her in spite of the fact that she could barely breathe. She was going to miss having her best friend by her side too. Once they pulled apart, Marine placed her hands on both of Carrie's shoulders and squeezed them.

"Everything will be fine. I'll see you soon. Don't go running around and making yourself out to be a pirate when you're not."

"Take care of yourself too Marine." Carrie replied. "And don't go about doing anything that you might regret in the future." She added with a teasing smile. Marine raised an eyebrow at her but before she could ask her to explain further, the blond haired woman had let go and began to urge the others to move as well. The black haired woman stood there and watched Carrie with confusion on her face.

"What the hell was that about?" She muttered to herself. She didn't notice Jack walking up to her side and jumped in surprise when she felt his hand on her shoulder.

"Now love, this is no time to take a break and let your thoughts wander about aimlessly. We have to hurry if we want to make it back to the Pearl without dealing with your clone or the other." Without waiting for an answer, he grabbed her hand and began to run as fast as he could to the docks together with Jones. Marine followed behind and managed to keep up with them as the three swerved through the crowd and the road. It was during this time that Marine noticed how smooth and balanced Jack was as they ran. It was obvious now that all that drunken swagger was nothing but a show for others so they would underestimate him and such, letting Jack take the upper hand in any situation that calls for it.

One more reason to add to her many of why she admired and liked Jack Sparrow.

Interrupting her from her own thoughts, the man who has invaded her whole mind stopped running and made Marine crash onto his back. The pirate almost fell forward but managed to keep himself balanced as Marine grabbed Jack's shoulder from behind to steady herself. She heard Jack grumble and was about to shout at him when she saw the reason for the sudden cease. Her eyes widened as she watched her best friend being carried off by her own clone. She looked for her other friends and saw them fighting against other men that the clone had most likely called on. Immediately her thoughts were on saving Carrie. She jerked her hand away from Jack's grip and ran after the two as fast as she could, ignoring Jack as he called her name. She was about to take out her sword when a different idea came to her mind. She took out the bag of gold Jack had given her and tossed it high in the air, at the direction of Carrie and her clone.

It got her the reaction she wanted. A lot of heads turned as the gold coins that had moved out of the bag gleamed its reflection against the sun. As soon as the coins fell to the ground a stampede of men, women, children and elderly folk surrounded Carrie and her clone as they took as much gold as they could get their greedy hands on. She ignored Jack's grief at the loss of his precious gold as she dove into the crowd with no hesitation at all. Marine thoughtlessly stepped onto a man's back and jumped into the center of the crowd. She knocked the clone back, grabbed her best friend's arm and dragged her away, dodging people who were making their way into the growing sea of people. A hand reached out from the crowd and held onto Carrie's hand. The other woman screamed as she struggled to shake the hand off. Marine turned around and was about to slice the hand off with her sword when they both heard the sound of a familiar voice.

"Carrie! Marine! It's me! I'm so glad you're both all right." The young blond haired woman cried as she squeezed in between two persons and hugged the two in relief. Carrie felt her whole body grow limp as she took a shaky breath. Marine was having a similar experience though she was not on the verge of falling down or growing weak. Instead, she seemed even more determined and headstrong. They had to escape. Even if it was only Carrie and herself. They were the only things the other pirates wanted. If they left, they would leave everyone else alone. She couldn't find AnaMaria in the crowd of commoners and fighters though. After heaving a heavy and frustrated sigh, she looked at Elizabeth and passed Carrie to her.

"Get her to the Pearl now! Don't look at me like that, you know as well as I do that the plan we've made before is lost in all this chaos now. Go and keep yourselves safe. I'll come as soon as I find the others." She told them. Elizabeth gave a nod and together with Carrie headed towards the Black Pearl which was still surprisingly docked without a single scratch on it.

No good jinxing that now when they needed the ship in their most dire moment.

She looked back at the scene before her. The crowd was beginning to disperse as the last of the gold coins she threw was taken away. Carrie's clone and the other men who were fighting with her were visible to her now. There was Will, parrying swords with one. Jones and Cornelius were doing the same as they stood side by side with Will. AnaMaria was the fiercest fighter among all, swinging her sword at her enemies this way and that. And of course there was Jack Sparrow, kicking a man away from him and locking eyes with her just at that moment. Even in the midst of the fighting Marine felt her heart flip at his gaze on her. He smiled and quickly made his way to her side.

"Are you all right?"

"Just peachy. Carrie and Elizabeth are back at the Pearl so we're safe for now. I don't think the plan's going to go through as it is though." She told him. Jack didn't seem bothered by that fact.

"Love, you are standing before the man who's made nothing but improvisations all his life. There is nothing to be afraid about when Captain Jack Sparrow is here. Now relax and hurry up. We're wasting time." He grabbed her hand again but this time, with her mind not focused on running or escaping, Marine felt the warmth of his skin crawl through her arm and up her spine. Her heart began to pound hard inside her chest, yearning to burst right out while her fingers felt like they were running through electric currents as she gripped his hand tightly. Jack looked at her as he felt her return the contact and for a moment they simply stared at each other. She couldn't breathe nor say a word and was relieved when Jack broke his gaze on her first to look at AnaMaria and call her attention.

"Get to your ship! Bring the others with you! We have the rest." He shouted. AnaMaria nodded in Jack's direction just as she stabbed one man through his chest with her sword. Then Marine's sight of AnaMaria and the others disappeared as Jack pulled her together with him. They headed to the docks as fast as they could and saw the ship ready to set sail. Unfortunately they also saw a ship still a few miles beyond them, headed towards the dock.

The two pirates looked back at that moment, and were dismayed to see Carrie's clone catching up to them. They looked at each other and at the same time made a run for the ship as quickly as they could. Carrie's clone narrowed her eyes at the two retreating pirates and after grabbing the pistol from the belt of one of her own allies, pointed it at Marine and pulled the trigger. To the female pirate, it felt like everything happened all at the same time. And what made it strange to her was how much aware of those few seconds she was. She heard the sound of the gun being fired, heard someone - she had no idea who it was - scream her name, felt the man beside her move forward and wrap his arms around her protectively before they both collapsed to the ground with her at the bottom. She heard Will next, calling her name and Jack's in worry. Jack's heavy weight frightened her; to her it felt too much like dead weight to be a comfort.

At such a thought Marine panicked. She gently pushed Jack off her and sat up, moving Jack's body close to her so she could see his back. What she saw worried her. There was a small hole close to the right side of his chest and blood was flowing out of it like a faucet. Jack's eyes were closed but she could see that he was still alive...for now.

"Jack! Jack say something!" Marine cried. She could hear him mumble words but they were too soft and blurred for her to understand. But her heart lightened a bit when she heard his voice and felt him move slightly; only in the slightest bit. She looked up, seeing Carrie's clone walking towards them, and felt anger rise in her. After placing Jack's body on the ground gently, she stood up and grabbed the pistol she had hanging on the side of her hip. Both women aimed their guns at each other and fired at the same time. Marine winced and dropped the pistol she held to place her hand on the gunshot, where a trail of blood began flowing down the length of her left arm. She saw Carrie's clone on the ground holding one of her leg in pain. She frowned at the sight and grumbled in annoyance.

_Is my aim that bad now? Not like I wanted to kill her, but I was aiming for her heart that time._

Her thoughts were quickly shoved back by a splash of reality; had she been true to her aim, Carrie's soul would have never been completed. She wanted to kick herself for almost destroying her friend's life. But any further self-punishment had to be put on pause as she saw AnaMaria move behind the injured clone and knock her out to Marine's relief. The dark skinned pirate looked at Marine and was about to walk to her when Marine held up her blood-free hand at her.

"Don't! I'll be fine! You go on with the others to your ship and meet us at the designated island. Go!" She shouted. AnaMaria hesitated, then with a slight nod relented and walked back to the men, dragging Carrie's body all the while. Marine went down on one knee beside Jack and shook him hard.

"Jack? Jack don't you dare fall asleep! If you do I'll wake you up and break each and every single one of the bottle of rums you asked me to buy." She threatened. Jack's face was becoming pale and he could barely flutter his eyelids as he looked at her. He mumbled something that made Marine furrow her brows.

"What was that?"

"Not the rum." He mumbled then winced at the strain. Marine stared at him for a full minute, debating on whether to let the man die, kill him even quicker herself or to laugh or cry at the relief that he was still sensible enough to say something that he would normally say.

"Marine! Marine!" Her head snapped up at the sound and saw Carrie and Gibbs headed towards her. Her mood turned serious as she pushed any worried hands away from her.

"Stop being concerned about me and help me bring Jack to the ship! He's been shot but he's alive and I have no idea how long he's going to stay that way." She spoke. Gibbs nodded and placed Jack's arm around his shoulder as he carried his weight on him. Then when Marine would say nothing else, he looked at Carrie.

"Go ahead of us to the Pearl and tell our surgeon to prepare the captain's room for Jack. Tell him it's a gunshot." He said. Carrie was surprised by the order but nodded and ran as fast as she could to the ship. Marine walked slowly together with Gibbs, one hand pressed to the gunshot wound she had, watching Jack attentively as he slowly flitted in and out of consciousness. Gibbs looked at her and frowned.

"You should let Roderic take a look at that wound on your arm as well. We wouldn't want it to get infected." He said. Marine barely heard the older man and gave an absentminded nod. "Marine, lass, why don't you go on ahead and help the crew in setting sail from this port?" He suggested. Marine finally looked at the first mate and shook her head with a frown.

"No! I want to help you in taking care of Jack's wound. We have to take care of his injuries as soon as possible or it might be too late. I would never live with myself if he died." She looked ahead as they continued walking, biting her lips and clenching her hands into fists. "It's my fault he was shot. If only I was more careful...if only Jack didn't move behind me to block it..." The last brought a painful tug at her heart.

"Well lass, as interesting as that sounds we're really short on time right now. Roderic and I will take care of Jack. You should go and command the crew."

"You go and command the crew while I stay with Jack." Marine answered back angrily. "You're the first mate. It's your responsibility to take over Jack's role when he's down. Don't go running off just because the situation is not to your liking."

"Who's running away from their responsibilities?" Gibbs shot back, though he said it in an almost gentle manner that hit Marine harder than any shouting or scolding would have done. "I understand how flustered and concerned you are about the Captain but what you're doing right now is not going to make things better. I'm an old man Marine, but you're still young; full of energy and vigor. If there's anyone on the ship strong enough and capable enough in sending us out of this hell hole we're in right now, it's you. I'm sure Jack would wholeheartedly agree with that. You're better used outside sailing and ordering the crew than inside tending to injuries. Let us do our job, and you do yours."

Marine could feel herself breaking down and slapped her cheeks to keep herself from crying. All the emotional stress she was feeling can be vented through temporarily captaining the ship. Slowly her mind cleared, and reason overpowered her concern for Jack. She looked at Gibbs, who smiled at her and nodded when he saw exactly that through her now clear blue eyes. She smirked back at him and began to stride forward with strength and confidence. She saw Elizabeth and Carrie standing at the rail and saw them smile in relief when they saw her. Panic and distress had to be put aside for now. Now she could see with her clear head that there were people depending on her. She stood at the gangplank and looked at the ship that was still steadily making its way towards them. Then she turned to face everyone with determination on her face.

"Carrie, Elizabeth, go with Roderic and help them take care of Jack. Men, take off the gangplank! Raise the anchor! Hoist the sails! Load the weapons! I want at least one man standing by a canon and waiting for my orders. If I don't give the order to fire during the battle please have the sense to fight with the rest. Now move it you scabrous dogs!" She shouted as she made her way to the helm. "Carter!" She called out as the young man passed her by. "Get me some bandages and a bottle of rum from Roderic. And make it quick!" After giving the female pirate a curt nod, Carter ran off to the captain's cabin. Marine stood before the wheel and placed her hands on the rough surface of the wood. The wind was on their side at the moment, leading them away from port and onto the sea. Her eyes glanced at the approaching ship; her mind quickly working on how to avoid having any serious battles. The clone was a part of her, therefore she assumed that the clone's way of thinking was similar to hers. All she had to do was outsmart the other woman and get away.

But how?

She pursed her lips as her eyes began to glaze in deep thought. It was all too confusing to think about. She and the clone would know and would be able to partly predict the other's plans and movements. Being one step ahead would be difficult in this case. She had to do something different so that the other clone wouldn't make out what she was going to do. She had to be unpredictable. A wicked smile slowly formed on her lips as an idea formed in her head. Oh yes, whether it was to fight to the death or escape evil clutches, Marine will not go down without style. She turned her attention to the crew and shouted an order that caused many to stare at her incredulously.

* * *

Within a few more minutes the Black Pearl found itself side by side with the other ship. Marine was currently standing at the rails on the starboard side, holding onto the netted ropes and glaring at the sight on the other ship. She had given her order; the crew was reluctant to do it, but she made sure that it was done even if it meant she had to prepare it herself. Now she looked at the other ship, where pirates were moving about and doing their work. From what she could see of the men, they were exhausted and tired. A smile grazed her face. So the clone had not been merciful on her men and most likely drilled them to work just to catch up with the Black Pearl. She estimated their trip to have been non-stop from Nassau, to Port Royal and now to this little island. The crew was most likely angry and they would become easier targets. They didn't even load canons or opened the windows at the gun deck to fire. It was an advantage and an opportunity that she was grateful to take. The Pearl could only take so much beating in a month.

The clone stepped up on the rails on her side of the ship as her men continued to work. It was the first time the two pirates have met each other face to face, without any obstructions or the like. Marine smiled as she bowed to the other woman. The clone gave a snort as she did a similar bow as well. Marine could see her eyes roam about the ship and felt her lips twitch in annoyance when she caught on what the other was doing.

"I see that Sparrow isn't running about being his usual crazy self. Where is that blundering buffoon?" The clone asked. Marine felt another twitch at hearing her own voice coming through another. She clenched her fists tightly and bit back a retort. It would be best for her if she didn't let the clone know of Jack's currently dangerous state. Now that she thought about it, Gibbs, Roderic, Carrie and Elizabeth haven't gone out of Jack's cabin ever since they arrived at the ship. For one brief moment her worries shifted to the injured pirate and she wished with all her might that he was going to be okay. She knew that there was sure to be a fight within a few more minutes and hoped that they would be smart enough not to go out.

"He's busy trying to keep this ship in tact." Marine said casually, coming back from her thoughts. "You know him. And he'll most likely avoid the two of us so we can face each other squarely; man-to-man. Or woman for that matter." She added with a smirk. The clone gave a slight nod.

"Yeah, I know him just as well as you do so you don't need to explain further. And I know that he won't be pleased when he finds out that it would be your fault his precious Pearl will be destroyed." Marine narrowed her eyes at the clone. "Now we both know that it's annoying to beat around the bush so I'm going to be straight with you. Surrender and I'll harm no one and nothing on the Black Pearl."

"Why should I believe you? If I did as you asked you would get me, merge your soul into mine and have your dastardly way with them without having to worry about me. You of all people should know that I won't trust you with your word." Marine answered. The clone chuckled.

"Guess I do know. It's confusing to have two Marine's existing at the same time isn't it? We're both fighting each other for the right to be the true original. Riding on the Black Pearl, meeting pirates, being one ourselves; an adventure that once upon a time we would have killed to have."

"Fight for the right?" Marine laughed, causing the clone to narrow her eyes. "Excuse me? I'm not fighting for the right to be original because I am the original here! You're just a part of my soul; something that had only come into existence because of the cursed gold. And what you're trying to do here is to fight for my original body. If I hadn't come here through the coin, you wouldn't even be here!"

"And whose fault is that then? I'm simply being myself; getting back what is incomplete in order to truly feel like a normal human being. It's not like I'm doing anything inhumane or something like that. You have to suffer the consequences of what you've done." The clone sighed and shook her head in regret. "I can see that conversations won't work here. Given other circumstances I'm sure we would have both enjoyed each other's company. But...alas we have to do what we have to do. ATTACK!" The clone shouted as she looked over her shoulder at the men standing behind her. With loud battle cries, the pirates on the other side of the ship either swung or placed gangplanks across the water. Marine sensed the rest of the crew giving their own battle cries as they charged at the oncoming pirates. The clone did not go to the Black Pearl like the others to her surprise. It only made her assume that the gold coin was not with her. The clone probably thought that it was still with Marine and didn't want to risk going there to be 'merged' with her. This was more relief than Marine had expected and she was once more grateful for the sudden turn of events.

"At my signal! You all know what to do!" Marine shouted in return. Amidst the fighting and the chaos that had already began in other parts of the ship, this wasn't as taken note of as it should have been. Those she had ordered to stay by her side heard her call and nodded their heads in understanding. She looked at the group of pirates that made their way onto the deck and walked towards her with sickly, dirty grins on their faces.

"What kind of pirates are yeh? Walkin' around with no swords or daggers!" One cried at the sight of Marine and a few of the crew without their swords. "Perhaps yeh've all lost your other 'sword' as well!" He shouted. The rest of his group laughed at the bad pun. Marine made a face and wrinkled her nose in disgust.

"God can't you be a bit more imaginative than that?" She watched them glare at her and growl to seem threatening. She merely gave a short laugh as she stepped back and gestured to the others to do the same. "I'm sure you fine gentlemen are tired of seeing balls. You wanna see swords instead? Well here they are long and sharp. Hope you enjoy them. NOW!" She and a few of the men who were standing beside her stepped to the side and crouched low, revealing a large canon pointed at the enemy. The pirates stared at the canon in stunned surprise, especially when they saw the glinting blades stuffed inside the mouth of the black canon instead of the black gunpowder-filled canon balls. "Carter!" She shouted. The man Marine called for was standing by the canon's trigger and at the female pirate's command, he pulled the rope with one hand while the other was pressed to his ear to keep as much of the explosion from deafening him as possible.

The canon's recoil would have sent it flying overboard and destroying another part of the Black Pearl. Marine was glad that she had thought of tying the canon to the boat as firmly as possible before firing it. She didnt think Jack would be pleased to have something broken again after just repairing it a few hours ago. At least 10 blades shot into the air as the canon fired and headed straight for the group with incredible speed. Most of them struck the pirates down and some even went through their bodies at the force of the blow. Marine was pleased to find that all of the men who had mocked them before were lying on the ground in their own blood. Some of the crew stared at the sight incredulously; they would never have thought of such an idea and would have thought it an impossible feat. Marine turned her gaze to the pirates with a mischievous grin on her face that some would have understandably mistaken as Jack's own.

"I like using this. Might think of calling it after my name in the future. Get the swords and load them in again. I'll leave the targets and the firing up to you." She told them as she made her way to the pile of dead bodies. Her eyes roved around the bloody scene before settling on the short sword she owned. With a smile and while whistling a short tune, she grabbed the hilt that was sticking out from the corpse's body and pulled it out. Other pirates followed after her and were grabbing the enemies' swords along as well. She nodded to them before walking away from the group. There was one more surprise she had up her sleeve. It was just as risky as the previous plan had been - though not as significant, mind boggling or shocking-, but it would make all of their lives easier if it would work. She made her way to Jack's cabin as quickly as she could, fighting pirates along the way.

"Let's hope our little prisoner is in better spirits today." She told herself. She ignored the loud, raucous noise behind her and began to speak even before she fully entered the cabin. "Roderic how's Jack?" She asked. The doctor looked up at the sound of the female pirate and gave her an assuring smile.

"He'll be fine. He lost a lot of blood but I got the bullet out of his body. All he needs is to keep himself from moving around too much while the wound heals." Marine gave a slight sigh of relief that wasn't unnoticed by Elizabeth. Then one eyebrow raised in curiosity when Marine saw only Elizabeth and Roderic by Jack's bed. "Where's Carrie and Gibbs?" She asked them as she searched around the room.

"Gibbs went to help out the crew in the fighting. Carrie took the keys to the brig and planned to set Norrington free. She just left a few minutes ago." That caused Marine's head to jerk towards Elizabeth with surprise.

"She did what?!"

* * *

"It's a good thing I can handle seeing this." Carrie muttered as she watched Roderic take out the bullet from Jack's back. The pirate himself had fallen unconscious and barely felt the pain that would have been there had he been awake. The blond haired woman thanked TV for showing her such gruesome scenes that she wouldn't be as sick as Elizabeth seemed to be. She turned her head to the other woman who was standing a few meters away, sitting on a chair beside Jack's desk and looking a bit paler than usual. Then again, she remembered her best friend telling her a story about watching a video about a woman giving birth for their basic biology class and grimaced as she recalled how Marine had lost both her breakfast and lunch because of it. 

In thinking of her best friend - turned pirate - she remembered the situation they were currently in and jumped at the sudden sound of battle cries and swords clashing against swords. This made both Gibbs and Elizabeth turn their heads to the door. The first mate took out his sword and moved towards the door, gesturing to Carrie to stay by Roderic's side. "Can never be too careful." He muttered before standing guard by the door. The ship's doctor was still tending to Jack, sweat forming on his forehead and dripping down to his cheek.

"Get me the basin quick! I have it." Roderic cried as he shifted the tools he had in his hand. Carrie immediately took the silver basin they brought with them and held it out for Roderic. With one last grunt, the doctor pulled out the tiny piece of bullet and dropped it on the basin together with the tool with a loud clang. Then he took a needle and thread and began to close the wound. Carrie couldn't help but heave a sigh of relief at the fact that they were almost done.

"Is Jack going to be all right?" Elizabeth asked, moving a step closer to the doctor when she was sure that most of the gory details of the tending was done. Roderic looked at Elizabeth and nodded.

"Aye, he'll be fine after getting enough rest. He's a lucky dog, the Captain. The bullet missed all of the main veins that connected to his heart."

"Thanks goodness..." They heard the sound of a canon being fired and felt the ground shake slightly at the force. They looked at Gibbs who could only chuckle goodheartedly.

"That lass can be just as fierce as Jack is."

"Why don't you go out and help the crew?" Roderic offered as he took the bandages that were lying on the side of the bed. "We're done here as soon as I bandage him up."

"All right then lad. Take care Miss Swann, Miss Lockheart." Gibbs gave a curt nod. The sounds from outside filtered into the room as Gibbs opened the door and they could hear the two groups of pirates battling it out against each other. "Looks like both sides are doing considerably well. I hope the crew can hold out longer than the other..." The older man grumbled before closing the door behind him and muffling the sounds into a bearable level. Carrie frowned at what Gibbs said then turned her direction to Elizabeth who saw her expression and returned it wtih a reassuring one.

"Marine is a good pirate. I'm sure they'll come out the victors in the battle."

"I know...but I couldn't help but worry..." She muttered. "I don't want anyone to die because of us. If we lost, the clone would no doubt kill everyone and keep Vanessa and I at the brig of their own boat." At the mention of it, Carrie widened her eyes. "The brig! Norrington's still there. We can't let him stay there trapped if ever we lost this fight. It's unfari." She said looking at Elizabeth and glad to see agreement in the woman's eyes. Before the other woman could open her mouth to offer, Carrie was already fishing for the keys in Jack's person. When she didn't find it, she moved to his desk where the ring of keys lay. She grabbed this, took out her sword and made her way to the door. "You and Roderic keep an eye on Jack! I'll go get Norrington." Without waiting for a reply from either person, she closed the door and ran as fast as she could to the brig.

Fortunately for her the other pirates were too busy fighting with the Black Pearl's crew to take too much notice of her. She didn't feel up to fighting with the pirates; not when she had none of the skills that the others do. She came to the brig in no time at all and saw Norrington standing behind the bars, gripping them tightly as his knuckles turned white. He was agitated and worried about not knowing what was happening outside the ship.

"What on earth is going on?!" He cried. Carrie began to look for the right key as she spoke.

"Marine's clone is here. We're being attacked." She cursed as the next key she shoved into the lock didn't work and went on searching. Norrington frowned at this bit of information and was beginning to feel irritated at how slow Carrie was being.

"Did Sparrow send you here?"

"No. I came here on my own. He's been shot and is in his cabin unconscious." She explained. "Damn it! Why does Jack has too many fucking keys?" She muttered angrily as the key ring broke apart and sent all the keys spread out on the ground. Norrington was about to open his mouth and say something when he looked behind Carrie and pushed his hands through the bars to push her aside.

"Watch out!" Blade met metal bars as the pirate slashed down. Carrie fell to the ground but she was quick enough to turn around and stand up as the lone pirate grinned at her.

"What is a pretty little lass such as yerself doing here eh? Ye should 'ave stayed hidden where the likes of us won't get to ye." He licked his lips and stared at Carrie with hunger as he slowly made his way towards her. The sword that was aimed at the pirate caused the man to stop and step back warily. Carrie felt her hand shaking with fright as she fought to keep her face as placid and brave as she could. The pirate was fearful at first, then he saw how afraid Carrie was and laughed. Norrington was shouting angrily, shaking the bars as hard as he could as he watched the pirate move closer to Carrie. He saw the keys on the ground and began picking them up one by one then inserting them into the lock to try and get out of the cell.

"Ye shouldn't go about playing with pirates lass." He held up his own sword and tapped hers lightly, making Carrie jump and step back further away. "Yer much to pretty to be holding a sword and fighting me. As soon as we're finished with this I'm bringing ye with me. I'm sure the others would enjoy having...a different kind of company every evenin'." He chuckled and dodged the strike Carrie tried to make.

"Stay back!" Carrie shouted. "Stay back or -"

"Or what strumpet? Kill me?" He gave a roar of laughter at this before looking back at Carrie with a disgusting grin on his face. "Ye could barely stand with that tiny thing in yer hands and ye expect me to believe that ye 'ave the gall to stab me? Don't look down on me lass!" With sudden cheerfulness, the pirate held out his arms to either side, cajoling her with a nasty smile. "Come on, I'd like teh see ye try." Carrie gripped the hilt of the sword tightly and felt her whole body dripping with sweat. She willed herself not to shake; she tried to remember how eager she had been to become a pirate. If this was part of being one, then she had to be strong. Her heart pounded through her as she took a step forward. But the pirate grabbed her arm and raised his sword in the air to strike at her.

"Too slow." Carrie widened her eyes and screamed just as the man swung his arm down. Blood splattered on her face and she dropped to the floor, thinking that the man had succeeded in killing her. She barely registered the other scream that came from the pirate as he looked at where his hand used to be. He turned around and saw a very pissed off female pirate standing behind him. Marine didn't let the other get the chance to do anything else as she stepped up and stabbed the pirate as roughly as she could. The man widened his eyes in shock then Marine saw the orbs glaze and roll back. She pulled out her sword from the pirate and kicked him away with disgust on her face.

"Carrie! Carrie are you all right?" Marine asked as she knelt down before the younger woman. She inspected her and found to her relief that it was only the other man's blood that was on her and no one else's; especially hers. She shook the younger woman lightly and fell back in surprise when Carrie wrapped her arms around Marine and cried.

"I was so afraid Vanessa! He...he was mocking me. He knew I couldn't fight; knew I couldn't kill him. It was kill or be killed Vanessa! I didn't want to..." Marine hugged her back and soothed her nerves as she whispered into her hair.

"Calm down Carrie. It's all right. It's over now. He won't be going back up to hurt anyone ever again." She looked at Norrington who was still trying to find the right key and saw one out of his reach. She made Carrie let go of her and walked towards it. Bending over to pick it up, Marine looked at Norrington with a frown.

"If I release you will you promise to work for the Black Pearl as its crew? If you do, Jack might be less enthusiastic about marooning you on a deserted island. He might even consider sending you back to Port Royal." She said. Norrington snorted at that.

"You've taken me with you. The Royal Navy won't be pleased to see me even if I do come back and tell them that I was not involved with pirates. You've taken away everything I have so I might as well agree to this." He grumbled. Marine said nothing as she opened the door to his cell and let him step out of it. She walked back to the corpse to get his sword - it took her quite a while to get it out with the pirate's hands still clutching it tightly - and handed it to Norrington who grimaced at the dirty, bloodied blade.

"Take care of Carrie. I'm going back up." She told him and after one more worried glance at her best friend, headed up the stairs to the upper deck. As she was reaching the last step at the top, she looked back and saw Norrington helping the still shaken up Carrie. Norrington looked at her and widened his eyes in surprise. Marine narrowed her own eyes as her hand gripped the hilt of her short sword tightly and turned around to fight when all of a sudden a fist collided with her cheek and sent her falling back into the brig.


	21. Growing Mistrust

**AN: **Yay! I have completed the 21st chapter! dances all around Unfortunately because my college 3rd term is staring, I'll have less time writing. So that means updates will become slower. Still, as I've said many times before, no worries. I still plan to finish this story and not leave you hanging. And so without further ado, here's the next chapter! Read, Review and Enjoy!

* * *

_**"You know how often the man switches sides to suit his needs." - Marine's clone**_

**Chapter 21 - Growing Mistrust**

It was fortunate for Marine that Norrington was there. If he wasn't she would have crashed onto the ground in worse pain than she was feeling at the moment. Carrie stepped back as Norrington caught Marine and kept her from falling further. The female pirate winced as she felt her cheek throb from the impact. She rubbed it slightly then looked up at the top of the stairs with a low growl of anger. Marine's clone stood there with her arms crossed and a smug grin on her face.

"Are you all right?" Norrington asked as Marine moved away from the former commodore and continued to rub her cheek.

"Fine. That was some damn punch you got there!" She said, glaring up at the clone. "I better pay you back double." She added as she took out her sword and began to make her way up the stairs once more. This time she was prepared for whatever was to come. Norrington and Carrie stayed behind and watched the two as they began to fight. Marine's sword clashed against the clone's as they parried and blocked each other on the stairs. It was a challenge for the two women, for they have never fought on the stairs before. When one of them moved to dodge an attack, the attacker would become off balance and would in turn block or dodge another oncoming attack. Norrington was surprised that the fight could last that long without one of them killing the other.

The blades of the two female pirates crashed against each other once more. Marine held the hilt of her sword tighter while her free hand held onto the rails to keep herself from falling back from the force. The clone was doing the same, holding on to the railing as well. They moved their faces closer together and could feel each other's breath. The clone looked at the bandage wrapped up around Marine's left arm and grinned when she saw it slowly turning red.

"Why don't you just give up this fighting? We all know I'm stronger than you are now. And with the additional injuries you have, you'd be in deep trouble if you keep going." Marine grunted as she felt herself moving slightly backwards by the clone's push. Her left arm was rippling with pain and she noticed her strength becoming even weaker than before.

"That's only because you stole my strength from me!" She replied back in anger. They pushed each other back and were face to face once more. Marine attempted to thrust the clone on her side, but the woman avoided that and while Marine was off-guard attempted to strike her shoulder with the sword. Marine raised her sword and blocked the attack just in time as she went down on the steps on one knee to keep herself from being overpowered. She then grabbed the clone's leg and pulled, causing the woman to fall down on the stairs with a loud thud. Marine used this opportunity to move up and pin the clone's arms and legs with her own.

"I think we both know who's the winner this time." Marine said as she smirked at the clone. The other Marine rolled her eyes, not at all bothered by the fact that she had 'lost'.

"And we both know that you don't have the gold coin with you. If you had then I would have been merged with you hours ago." She replied, causing Marine to widen her eyes. "That's right. I know you don't have it. It's always been around your neck but I had noticed long ago that you weren't wearing it. I assumed that you had lost it or that it was taken away."

"Well that doesn't mean I lost. All I have to do is tie you up, keep you in the brig and get back the gold coin before merging myself with you. Same goes for Carrie's clone." The other Marine widened her eyes in surprise, then quickly covered it with a calm expression.

"You might have won the battle, but you won't win the war, I'll make sure of that. You think you're going to win because you have 'friends' to count on? Ha! Jack Sparrow isn't a likely candidate for someone to trust your life with; especially if someone offers him something much better." At this it was Marine's turn to look surprised.

"What are you talking about?" The clone's grin grew as she looked at Marine evilly.

"I had a lovely talk with Jack Sparrow while you and the rest were being imprisoned at Fort Charles. No one but he and I were awake at the time so I only got to offer a proposal to Jack. But I think talking to Jack will get me better results than speaking with the others. Will and Elizabeth are too loyal and too instilled with morals to agree with me. Carrie won't ever listen to me if she has you with her and Norrington won't even think of considering my offers." Understanding dawned on Marine's face.

"You told him you wouldn't harm him or the Black Pearl if he gave me up to you." Her eyes grew even wider after a moment's thought. "That's why you weren't firing cannons at the ship..." They furrowed after another moment. "But if he'd agree with you, he would have given me up to you long before so he won't be involved anymore. So that means..."

"Well Sparrow might not have agreed just yet...but it pays to remind him about it occasionally. You know how often the man switches sides to suit his needs." The clone said with a cheeky grin. She moved her head closer to Marine's and gave her an evil smile. "You ought to watch your back. You never know when someone will suddenly stab you in the back and give you away to the enemy." Marine narrowed her eyes at the other woman.

"Why are you telling me all this? Are you trying to scare me off or plant a seed of doubt in our group? You'd want that wouldn't you? It would be easier for you to take us down then." The smile shifted from evil to mysterious as the clone shrugged in reply.

"Maybe, maybe not. I don't care what you think of my warning to you. I just felt like telling you about it. But if you do get scared. If I do plant a seed of doubt in your head and create problems in your group, then it would really make my day." Before either one of the women could say another word, they both heard the sound of cannon being fired followed by an explosion close by. The clone used this moment of distraction to lift her head and headbutt Marine as hard as she could. The other woman was stunned and her hold on the clone weakened. Norrington immediately rushed up the stairs to catch Marine as the clone pushed her away roughly. When she was free, the clone ran back onto the deck as fast as she could. Carrie moved up to her best friend and was shaking her gently.

"Vanessa! Vanessa are you all right?" She asked. Marine couldn't speak for a few moments as the pain in her head amplified. Her mind swirled about and it felt like she had lost control of her limbs. She closed her eyes and groaned as she forced a hand to lift up and rub her forehead soothingly.

"God it hurts." She moaned. "You can set me down now. But you better stay by my side. I don't think I'm ready to stand or walk on my own." She mentioned. Norrington did as Marine asked and kept her body upright while Marine tried to recover from the pain. There were more sounds of cannons being fired and as much as Marine didn't want to, told the other two that they ought to go up and see what all the commotion was about. With Norrington and Carrie on either side of her, the three moved up the stairs and looked in the open sea to find a ship firing at the clone's own ship. Another blast came from the attacking ship and destroyed one of the main mast of the clone's ship. Carrie took note of the people on the other side and smiled brightly while she held Marine.

"It's AnaMaria and the others!"

"About time." Marine grumbled as she found herself slowly recovering. The world wasn't spinning as wildly as before and she managed to stand up on her own without anyone's help. She looked to the starboard side and saw her own clone jump into the sea below without any hesitation. A few of the crew members rushed to the rails and peered down. Then they looked up at Marine - waiting for her orders she realized. Marine looked at the mess on the deck; all the dead bodies scattered about the floor and the swords that were sticking out of some. She noted with pride that her sword-in-the-cannon trick was greatly used by some of the crew. Heaving a heavy sigh, she shook her head. "Let her go. We'll find her eventually. Hopefully once we have the coins." Marine added under her breath. She walked up to the right side of the ship and grinned back at Will who was waving an arm at her.

"You took your lovely time in getting here. Do you plan on coming to the rescue at the very last minute every time we're in trouble?" She asked him with a grin. Will chuckled as he gave an off-hand shrug. She shook her head with a smile on her face in return before looking at AnaMaria who walked up beside Will.

"What happened to Jack? Is he...?" Concern filled the dark skinned woman's voice that made Marine smile. It was nice to know that there were some who still cared about Jack aside from the usual folks. Will looked at AnaMaria in surprise then turned his expectant and anxious gaze to the other female pirate. She in turn shook her head.

"He'll be all right. When we get together at the meeting place you'll see him drinking rum and being his usual daft self so don't worry."

"What happened to Sparrow?" Norrington asked as he walked up to Marine's side.

"He was shot while he was trying to protect Marine." Carrie replied to him. "Believe it or not pirates can have that instinct to protect those they care about at the cost of their own lives." Marine's whole body tensed at what Carrie said.

"Er...Norrington why don't you go on and help the crew sail us out of here. If they ask you why you're out here tell them that I took you out from the brig and that I'll be responsible for you and your actions." After a moment's thought she looked at the blacksmith once more. "Do you guys want to switch passengers? It would be helpful if Carrie and I aren't on the same boat where the two clones can take us together at the same time." Will was about to say yes in reply to her question; he wanted to be with Elizabeth and make sure that she stayed safe. But just as he was about to open his mouth they both heard the sound of cannons being fired. Marine looked at the clone's ship, thinking that it was the one firing, and frowned when she saw that it wasn't the one causing a ruckus.

"Marine! There's a ship up ahead!" Gibbs shouted at the helm. Every head that heard the first mate turned and saw what he did. It's sails were up, revealing a Royal Navy's Flag. Marine cursed as she moved onto the center of the deck, shouting out orders all the while.

"I want everyone working to get us out of this port as quick as possible. Bring down the flag! We're not going to fight the Navy in our state. Move your lazy asses or I'll throw you overboard!" She shouted. Carrie looked at her best friend with a slight grin.

"Does this mean I'm staying here on the Pearl?"

"Huh?" Marine stopped and looked over her shoulder. She frowned when she realized what Carrie said and couldn't help but sigh. "Yeah guess you and Elizabeth are. Get Roderic and tell him to help you throw the bodies into the sea. But keep our men's bodies for a while longer. We'll give them a proper funeral before sending them off into Davy Jone's Locker." She watched the younger woman run off into Jack's cabin and gave another heavy sigh. She didn't envy Jack of his position as captain and wanted the man to get better soon so she can give him back the responsibilities. AnaMaria and Will were still standing on the merchant ship and watched as Marine looked at them and waved.

"Sorry about this. We can't risk getting caught by the Navy. We'll see you guys in a few months then." She shouted. Will gave an understanding smile and a nod to what she said. AnaMaria smirked as she waved back at the female pirate. Marine tucked in a few loose strands of her hair before turning around and looking up at Gibbs. "Set the course north of here Gibbs. I'll take charge of the helm after I fix things up a little." After receiving a curt nod from Jack's first mate she made her way towards the cabin she and Carrie shared. Her clothes were worn, tattered and bloody so she changed into a fresh, clean shirt before heading for the captain's cabin.

* * *

When she entered Jack's cabin she saw Elizabeth still inside, sitting quietly on a chair. Roderic and Carrie on the other hand were gone; probably off to do as she ordered. The young blond haired woman smiled at her as she stood up from the chair she was sitting on.

"Jack's doing all right. And it looks like there wouldn't be an infection. He's hasn't waken up yet though." Marine returned her smile.

"Thanks for the update Liz." Elizabeth walked up to Marine and gave her a small hug. That was when the blond haired woman noticed the large red stain on bandage wrapped around Marine's arm and frowned in concern.

"Your wound's bleeding again. Let me clean it and wrap it up for you." Before the female pirate could say no, Elizabeth made her way to the small cupboards and took a roll of bandages, a clean and wet rag and a bottle of rum. Afterwards she went back to Marine and took her arm before leading her to a chair. "You're going to let me take a look at you or I will lock you up in this cabin together with Jack."

"Oh no! Please! Anything but that!" Marine cried in exaggerated horror. "Don't make me stay in this cabin together with him! I beg you. I'll die if you do that." Elizabeth chuckled and shook her head at the female pirate in disbelief while she poured a bit of rum onto the wet rag. Marine grinned then winced as she felt the stinging pain of the rum on her wound. Afterwards she watched Elizabeth wrap a bandage around it before smiling at her work.

"Thanks." Marine said. Elizabeth smiled at her then put the things away before making her way to the door.

"You're welcome. I'll go and see if I can prepare something for Jack once he wakes up." Marine nodded to her and watched her close the door. Silence filled the room and Marine relished on it. It was a nice change from the firing cannons, the loud battle cries and the sounds of swordfighting. She looked at the man on the bed and was glad to hear his steady breathing. She had no idea what she would have done if Jack had died. The bed sank a little as she sat on the side, contented to watch Jack as he slept peacefully.

_If I didn't know who he was, I would have never thought of him as a lying, cheating pirate._

Her hand found its way to Jack's face. It hovered there hesitantly, never actually making physical contact in fear of waking him up. Her eyes stayed glued to his lips as she remembered his most recent 'attack' on her. Remembering the sensations she felt made her shiver slightly. How could one man be able to have such an effect on her?

"You know, it's rude to stare love." Jack's soft and weak voice sounded loud in the quiet room. Marine jumped when she heard him speak and looked at him to find his eyes closed but his lips curved into a smirk. Marine snatched her hand back as if it had touched something very hot and turned a dark shade of red. Jack opened one eye, saw the look on the female pirate's face and chuckled. His laughter was cut short when pain erupted from his back. He winced and groaned as he looked at Marine. She smirked back at him when she saw his discomfort.

"You were shot in the back Jack. I would be a lot more surprised if you weren't in pain right now." Jack closed his eyes again as he remembered what happened in the last few hours or so. It didn't help remembering it; in fact, it made the pain worse. Marine frowned in concern when she saw Jack's face and moved closer to him. "I'm so sorry Jack...if it wasn't for me you wouldn't be in this mess."

"You don't have to be sorry love." Jack replied. He was about to open his mouth and say more when he realized that he didn't know what to say. He had no idea why he had moved to protect Marine. All he could think at that moment was to keep Marine safe and unharmed. At the time it was the only emotion that truly overpowered his senses and his mind. He continued to stay silent as he watched Marine look at anything but him. The female pirate on the other hand bit her lip and played with her fingers as if she had only seen them for the first time.

"Thanks...for saving me I mean. You know, when the clone tried to shoot me and you moved in to...I'll leave you to get some rest." Marine said in a fluster as she stood up from the bed. That was when Jack decided he had enough with the awkward moment and grabbed her hand. Marine felt Jack pull her back and fell on top of him, which sent a slight wave of pain to the man. Marine turned her head to the pirate and frowned.

"Are you all right Jack?" She listened to the pirate groan and grumble and smiled. "I didn't kill you did I?" She said in a slightly teasing manner.

"God you're heavy." Jack muttered. Marine narrowed her eyes at him and contemplated on squishing Jack even more.

"Well it's your fault for pulling me back! Now let me go or I'll continue to squash you to death." She said. Jack furrowed his brows in confusion then realized a few seconds later that he was still holding onto Marine. He released his hold on her and watched as she sat up on the bed. Then after Jack was left to his own thoughts, a large grin grew on his face. Marine looked at him and titled her head in confusion. "What's with that expression on your face?"

"You're calling me Jack. In fact, if my assumptions are right, you've been calling me that ever since I got shot." Marine's face turned even redder than before. She realized too late that yes, she had been refering to him as Jack instead of the usual name she called him or refered him to. Jack grinned wider when he saw her reaction. "Does this mean that you actually care a deal more about little o'l me than you're letting me believe love?"

"Oh shut up!" Marine snapped, knowing that denying it would only make her look stupid. "Your risking your own life to protect me with no reason at all would also indicate that you care about me as much as I do you!" She added. It was Jack's turn to look flustered thought he kept it hidden better than Marine did. He said nothing in reply to her; instead he grumbled something under his breath and snuggled deeper into the blanket, turning his back to her. Marine shook her head from side to side, muttered 'big baby' to herself and when Jack wouldn't say anything else made her way to the door.

"I'll get Elizabeth to bring you something to eat." She went out of his cabin and gave a small sigh of relief. Somehow being alone in the same room as Jack was made her feel strange and awkward. She closed her eyes and shook her head of Jack before making her way to Gibbs at the helm.

"Gibbs, what's the butcher's bill for today?" She asked him. The first mate looked at Marine in surprise then furrowed his brows in confusion. It took Marine a few moments to realize that the man didn't understand what she meant.

"Sorry. I meant how many were killed in the fight a while ago." She explained. The older man rubbed his chin and grimaced.

"Butcher's bill eh? I don't like the sound of that term...but I guess it perfectly explains what happened here." He looked at the deck, specifically at the men who were mopping up the pools of blood that had begun to dry and stick to the wooden planks of the ship. "I would estimate about a total of 20 dead men. 5 of them were men of the Black Pearl while the rest were from the other ship. I heard from a few of the men that your swords-in-the-cannon trick really took out many of the other pirates." He shook his head at the thought of what she had ordered the crew to do a few minutes ago. "There are 5 other men who are injured but they'll be all right. And out of the 5 men who died on our side, three of them were new members recruited on this very island just a few hours ago." He stated. Marine frowned at him.

"What was the point of recruiting when they were only going to be useful to us for a few hours?"

"There's no point being bothered about it lass." Gibbs said while he patted Marine's shoulder in a comforting gesture. "You know just as well as I do that it's how pirates will always live their lives." Marine simply grumbled in agreement. Thinking of a pirate's life reminded her of other important things that she had to deal with. Her head moved about the deck in search of her blond haired friends.

"Hey Gibbs, have you seen Carrie or Elizabeth?" The old man placed a finger to his chin as he tried to recall something from his mind.

"Miss Swann's down at the galley. I don't know where the other lass is though. She ought to be somewhere around here helping out with the chores and the like." Gibbs replied. "That lass is really something else. It's the first time I've met someone her age who's determined and eager to become a pirate.

"I see...I'll take over the helm for now Gibbs. You go down below and tell Elizabeth to bring our captain some food. He's awake now and I bet ya he's hungry." After a short while she added, "And I suppose a bottle of rum will do as well. I'm sure that he'll wreak havoc on the ship if he doesn't get one soon. Especially after he finds out it's been used as medication by the injured." She muttered. Gibbs chuckled knowingly and nodded in agreement.

"Aye I'll let her know. And I'll even bring the bottle meself."

* * *

Jack was playing with his compass and muttering angrily at it when Elizabeth and Gibbs entered the cabin. His compass was supposed to point to the thing he wanted the most but all it kept doing was spinning around in circles. He already knew what he wanted; a bottle of rum. And he knew where that was located but it seemed that the compass didn't. It took the pirate captain a few more minutes of tinkering with the object before throwing it on the bed and noticing his visitiors. When he saw the two with what they were carrying he grinned brightly and sat up on the bed straighter. 

"Lizzie! Gibbs! Ah you've brought me some rum. Good work." He said when Gibbs handed him the bottle. He uncorked it eagerly and took a large swig of the alchoholic liquid. A contented sigh escaped his lips as he looked at Elizabeth who held a tray filled with food. "Thank you love. Gibbs," He began as he took a bite from the fish Elizabeth had the cook prepare. "What's going on with my ship and my crew?"

"Well Captain, after ye got shot the clone arrived and attacked the ship. Fortunately AnaMaria's ship arrived and helped in the fight. We're leaving the island and we're now making our way somewhere north of here. Marine said she knew where we were supposed to go to next and took charge of the helm so I left her to it." He waited for Jack to take some more bites from his meal before continuing. "Marine has been great help so far. She was the one who commanded the crew and got us out of that sticky situation. And so I've decided to let Marine be a temporary captain of the ship while you're still recovering from the injury." This made Jack drop his fork and choke on his food. Gibbs went up to Jack and slapped his back while the pirate recovered. When he did he grabbed Gibb's shirt and pulled him closer.

"You let her take over my ship?! You were supposed to be the next in command as my first mate!" Gibbs was surprised by his outburst and stammered in reply.

"But I thought...she was...so I...you don't want her to do it then?" He asked. Jack said nothing as he got out of the bed and wore his boots while making a face at the pain that came with his movements. Elizabeth went up to Jack and tried to stop him but the pirate turned his angry gaze at her, silencing the blond haired woman with surprise. Jack grumbled as he opened the door and walked out of his cabin into the humid air. He looked around and set his eyes on Marine, who was steering the ship at the helm casually. He was about to make his way there when he saw something else, stopped and narrowed his eyes.

"You! What are you doing standing out here on my ship and not in the brig where you belong?" He asked. Norrington smirked at Jack as he gestured to Marine with his head.

"During the fight with her clone she told me that they needed my help in the fight. So in return for releasing me from the cell and a promise that I shall not be marooned on an island, I am to be part of your crew...again." He explained. Jack felt his face turn red as he turned around in the direction of the helm. He clenched his hands into fists and began to walk towards her again, ignoring Norrington who was still talking to him. The man watched him make his way towards Marine and decided against following. He was not interested in watching the two pirates argue about him. Elizabeth and Gibbs on the other hand came out of Jack's cabin and went after the pirate.

The sound of Jack stomping footsteps on the stairs brought Marine's attention away from steering. And when she saw him coming up towards her, she frowned. "What are you doing?! You shouldn't be walking around the ship with that injury. Go back to your cabin and take some rest. I can take care of things for you while you're not strong enough." She said. Jack ignored her as he stopped a few meters from her.

"I'm not going to follow your orders! I'm captain of the Black Pearl so what I say goes savvy?" Jack said. "And you lass, will not be captaining my ship unless I say so!" Marine blinked at him then shrugged.

"All right. But I'm not letting you take charge while you're in your condition. Give it to someone else."

"Why? So you can convince them to join you in your plan of mutiny?" This made Marine narrow her eyes at Jack.

"I'm not planning on taking over your ship; I have no reason to do so when I'm content in being part of your crew. Don't you trust me enough to be in charge of your crew while you're still recovering?"

"The last time I trusted someone, they took my treasure from me and marooned me on an island."

"I'm not Barbossa." Marine muttered as she stepped up to Jack closer. "But I'm not sure if you're not the same as he is. Usually people become untrusting of others because they themselves know that they're being untrustworthy. So, enjoyed your conversation with my clone back at Fort Charles pirate?" She watched his face twitch and curled one side of her lip into a smirk. "Yeah I know all about that. The clone herself told me all about it. It looks like you haven't agreed to whatever it is she proposed, but you're Jack Sparrow. The reason you never mentioned your conversation with the clone was because you knew that once we learn of it we'll not trust you enough to let you in on our plans completely. And everyone here knows that you're always changing sides to suit your needs. So, which one of us do you think should be worried more? You? Or me?"

"Gibbs," Jack shouted, causing the old man who had followed Jack to the helm together with Elizabeth to jump in surprise. "You're to take charge of my ship while I'm still recovering is that clear? Any decision that has to be made has to go through me first. You..." Jack leaned even closer to Marine. "You're going to take us to wherever it is we're supposed to go to. Savvy?"

"Aye Captain." Gibbs said as he watched the two pirates warily. He hoped that the two wouldn't kill each other off at that moment. For a few seconds it seemed that they were going to attack each other. But Marine dropped her gaze on Jack as she took a step back from him.

"Fine. And after that Carrie and I will leave you alone and find ourselves another ship to ride on. I'm sure we'll have a better and easier time fighting our clones without your help." Marine replied cooly. "Especially not with what's happened now. I am never going to trust you for the rest of my life you backstabbing, lying, cheating bastard!" She added. Elizabeth walked up to the two and placed a hand on each shoulder with a disapproving frown on her face.

"Marine! Jack! This isn't the time to be fighting each other."

"We're not fighting." Marine said though her eyes were still angrily fixated on Jack. "Sparrow here is just going to let me steer the wheel in peace while he and the rest of you go back to your own business. Right?" Jack said nothing in return but he turned around and walked away. The three other people watched as Jack stomped down the steps and slammed the door of his cabin loudly. The rest of the crew who were standing on deck stared at the door in slight fear. Gibbs had to shout and call their attention before they snapped out of their dazes and went back to their own work. Elizabeth turned her gaze to Marine who was steering the wheel casually as if the conversation she had with Jack earlier never occurred.

"Marine are you all right? That was quite rude and ungrateful of Jack...He should be thankful that there was someone like you to order the crew while we were being attacked. If you hadn't done that then we would have acquired greater losses during the fight." Marine looked at Elizabeth and gave her the biggest grin she could muster up.

"All right? Why wouldn't I be all right? Sparrow was just worried about his ship and his role as captain. It's normal for someone like him to be untrustful of others. Don't worry about me. I don't care about what he thinks and I don't really mind it if he gets his job as captain back. It's just tiring to have all that responsibility thrown at you. All I want is to get that clone and be rid of it once and for all." She smiled again to emphasize on what she said. "Thanks for worrying about me Elizabeth, but I assure you that there is nothing to be worried about. Go on and find something else to do while you're stuck here on the Pearl."

"Are you sure? If you want some company while you steer I can always stay here and talk with you..." Marine shook her head.

"It's all right Liz. Thanks for your concern, but I'm fine and I really would like to be alone for now. Go. I'll call you when I want the company, I promise." She told her. Elizabeth looked at Marine who, after speaking, gazed at the front of the bow and went back to steering. She stayed a while longer and was about to open her mouth and say something when she faltered, deciding against it. A small sigh escaped her lips as she began walking down the helm and in the direction of the stairs leading below deck. The right side of Marine's eye glanced sideways and watched Elizabeth walk away. When Marine was sure that Elizabeth was gone, she raised her left hand to wipe away something wet in her eyes.


	22. Building up a Storm

**AN: **Thanks for those who have been reading and reviewing so far! I'm really sorry for the long delay in the updates. College life is difficult. And as an addition to that, I have acquired a fetish for One Piece for the past 4 weeks. I'm on my 93rd episode now! LOL Anywhoo, here's the next chapter. It's going to get pretty intense so brace yourselves and of course, enjoy the chapter!

* * *

_**"Jack there's going to be trouble ahead of us if we don't do something." - Elizabeth Turner**_

**Chapter 22 - Building up a Storm**

The ship they were on was not as big as the previous one they used. There was less people running the ship as well. Sharpshooter Marine's clone was beginning to grow irritated at how slow they were moving. They haven't even left the island to chase after the Black Pearl! Delaying their sailing would only make it harder for them to find out where the Black Pearl was headed to next. While she was standing behind the rails, staring at the sea and her mood becoming worse as time passed, a man stepped up beside her. She didn't have to turn to find out who it was. There was only one person brave enough to go up to her even in her blackest of moods.

"Unless you have something important to say, save your breath." She said. The man beside her chuckled.

"Is that any way to treat the man who has been helping you out ever since you came into existence?" Marine gritted her teeth and clenched her hands into tight fists. She wanted to get her hands on the pistol lying on the holster around her waist; wanted to take it out and shoot bullets into the man. But she knew that Maurice was right. It was only because of him that she had gotten this far in the game. If she killed him now, getting the other Marine would be harder than it already was. She looked at the older man and forced herself to smile.

"No of course not. Forgive me for being so rude to you." She said. Maurice smiled back at her then at the next instant sneered.

"There's no need for us to smile and pretend to like each other when we don't." The man said. "You need me to catch that rotten wench and I need you to take me back to my own world. All we need to do is work together and be civil to each other to achieve that goal. That isn't so hard to do now, is it?" The sneer disappeared, replaced by a straight face.

"Now I've noticed that we're taking quite a long time in our preparation to sail. If we don't leave soon we might never get the chance to catch up to them."

"I know that!" She snapped at him. "Do you think I haven't noticed that?"

"Judging from your face I can say that you have." Maurice replied calmly. "But being mad at me and the rest of the crew won't make things move faster. You have to do something to stop them or at least to find out where they're going."

"How? I can't possibly swim and follow them across the seas until they stop somewhere can I?!"

"You can't...but it can." Marine froze, then smiled as she shook her head slowly.

"You're truly a shrewd man Maurice. A cold-hearted one as well. Fine. Call the sea snake to follow the Black Pearl..." She paused as another thought came to her mind. She turned her gaze back at Maurice with an even bigger smile on her face.

"On second thought...we'll call your snake, but for a different reason. One that will make things a lot easier for us." Maurice raised both of his eyebrows in slight surprise. He then looked at her curiously.

"So what is this idea that you have thought of; the idea that you think will help us out more than mine would?" Marine's clone moved to Maurice and murmured softly near his ear. The men who were working on their ship barely noticed them as they moved about the deck, doing their respective work. Slowly one side of the older man's lips curled up into a smirk. Stepping back, he looked out at the sea and began to take something out from the pocket of his pants. As he did this the female clone walked away towards the captain's cabin.

Maurice took out a strange whistle, in the shape of a coiled up snake, and blew on it as hard as he could. There was no sound that came out; only silence, aside from the usual raucous noises coming from the crew of the ship that is. But Maurice knew that it was heard, as silent as it seemed, and waited for its coming. The ship began to rock violently as waves came crashing onto the port. Some of the crew men on deck stopped what they were doing to try and find out the source of the commotion. Other men who were standing on the docks looked out towards the sea apprehensively.

Marine's clone walked out of the captain's cabin casually with a map in hand, and watched a large sea snake jump out from the surface of the water without any interest or surprise. Its dark blue scales glistened with water and glittered under the sunlight as it floated right beside the ship patiently. The snake gave a wide yawn, revealing two sharp, poisoned fangs at everyone. Most of those close by screamed and ran away as quickly as they could at the sight of the monstrous creature. The men on board the ship Marine and Maurice were on seemed on the verge of running away as well. Other crew members who were not in Marine's or Maurice's sights were looking at each other in silent communication; they had heard of the rumors and it was only then when they realized the weight of the situation they were in. But before they could do anything else Marine's commanding voice boomed out and snapped them out of their fear and surprise.

"Get back to work you idiots! You're already wasting my time with how slow you dimwitts are moving. Don't give me a reason to find another living replacement." She warned. Almost immediately the men turned away from the sea snake; some knocking into each other and crashing down to the ground and creating even more chaos on the deck. Marine gave a frustrated sigh and rubbed her face with one of her hands at the same time.

"If I didn't need these guys badly I would have smacked their heads against each other until they got some sense into it." She murmured, causing Maurice to chuckle. She looked at him and at the sight of the whistle in his hand was reminded of the plan. Her hands opened up the rolled up map she held and motioned for Maurice to hold one end while she held the other. Then she began to speak to the older man while pointing at specific spots on the map.

"So we're currently here, somewhere in the Jamaican Island, and the Black Pearl moved in this direction while the other ship moved in the opposite direction if my suspicions are correct. Their group has split up from what I could make out from Jack Sparrow's ship. I don't know who owns the other ship nor of its connection to Sparrow and the others and I can only make a wild guess of those who are in that ship. But I'm sure that that person is on that specific ship no matter what. So give your orders to the snake and tell it to meet us here after its done with my orders." She said, tapping on another spot on the map. Maurice looked at it for a few moments without saying anything. Then he closed his eyes and blew on his whistle once more. Marine turned her gaze to those men on the deck and grinned when she saw that they were ready to set sail.

"All right you scabrous dogs! Weigh anchor! Hoist the sails! Leave anyone who falls behind. I want every second we wasted in this bloody island made up for or I'll keelhaul you all ya hear?"

* * *

If Marine didn't like the man so much she would have taken out her pistol and killed him on the spot without a care on who was watching. Her head didn't move as her eyes glanced sideways at a pirate who sat on a chair brought up for him. His arms were crossed over his chest and his legs were stretched out in front of him. Seeing him sitting there and looking intently at her every move only made her irritation grow worse. She closed her eyes and took deep breaths, struggling hard not to lose her temper on Jack. Her hands gripped the steering wheel tighter as she did. 

"Calm down Marine," She muttered to herself. "There's no point in getting angry at him. It's exactly what he wants you to do. He's just a sorry little mistrustful loser who wants others to feel lower than he is just to boost his ego." Saying this made her feel better and she was confident that she would make it through the month without any problems at all. She looked up at the crow's nest and saw Carrie sitting there, watching the horizon for any signs of suspicious activity. Her thoughts immediately fell back to her time at the captain's cabin, before the snake's attack.

_"Everything will be all right love. Trust me."_

Before they were attacked by Marine's clone, she had fully believed those words coming from Jack Sparrow and it soothed her to hear him say it. Now it just made her feel sick and miserable. She risked another glance at Jack and saw him still looking back at her. The pirate wasn't grinning or looked in a cheerful, spontaneous mood like he usually was; the frown on his face and the way his brows furrowed in deep thought said that much. She was so busy staring and wondering what the other man was thinking of that she didn't notice someone going up the stairs to where they were standing and calling out her name.

"Marine! Marine!" The female pirate jumped in surprise and saw Gibbs standing at the last step on the stairs.

"Gibbs? What is it?" She asked him. The older man stepped up to her and placed a hand on the steering wheel.

"Why don't you go down to the galley and have something to eat? You've been at the helm for two whole days now; it's not healthy for you to work so hard without taking any break. I'll take the helm while you're down at the galley. I already asked Elizabeth to save you a bit of bread and fish from lunch earlier." He offered. Marine hesitated in answering as she looked at the wheel. But after a moment she sighed in resignment and smiled at Gibbs.

"All right. I'll take a quick break then." She stepped aside as Gibbs moved to take over the helm. As she spoke, she leaned behind Gibbs and pointed at the front. "Just keep the ship moving forward. Then once you've passed around 30 miles look for me." The older man nodded in reply and watched as Marine walked down the stairs and made her way below the deck. Jack stayed a moment longer doing nothing before standing up from the chair and moving down the stairs as well. He walked slowly as he followed the female pirate towards the galley and could hear conversations coming from there as he came closer.

"Thanks for saving me a meal Liz."

"There's no need to thank me Marine. I was worried that you weren't having enough to eat; you've been steering the ship without any food or rest."

"It's nothing to be so worried about. I'll be fine so you have no reason to be so concerned about me. But since Gibbs has taken me away from the wheel I might as well have something to eat." When Jack entered the galley, he saw Marine bringing a chair towards herself and sitting on the table across Elizabeth; she was seated with her back against the door so she didn't see him entering. He noted that there was a plate of fish and bread on the table while two bottles of rum lay right beside it. He raised both his eyebrows in slight surprise when Marine took one of these and held it out behind her without looking at him.

"Since you were always watching me and barely ate the meals the others gave you, I assumed that you would want to have something to drink as well." She said coldly. Jack stared at the bottle in her hand then walked past her without taking it.

"I'll get my own bottle. That one might be poisoned." He said darkly. Marine's face was calm after Jack said this, but her grip on the bottle tightened until her knuckles were white. Elizabeth narrowed her eyes at Jack as she watched him take a new bottle from one of the cupboards.

"Jack! How could you think of something like that to someone who has never betrayed your trust?"

"Easy. Like this." He opened the cork, sniffed the contents then drunk half of its content in one swig. Marine opened her own bottle and drank it at the same time that Jack did. Elizabeth looked at the two of them as they brought down their bottles at the same time while glaring at each other and gave a weary sigh.

"Jack...Marine...this nonsense should stop right now. You two have no reason not to trust each other so why are you two acting so skeptical with each other?"

"No reason Liz?" Marine said as she took another swallow of rum. "Jack spoke with my clone and he never told it to any of us. It's obvious that he means to keep it a secret because he might consider whatever her offer was in case we're going to lose and get killed in the process. He wants to keep a trump card in his hand so that he'll come out alive whatever happens to us. How can I trust someone like that?"

"And how can I trust a woman who spends all of my gold in a single day when I specifically told her to only spend it on important things? And what about Norrington? You released him without my permission and told him that he was going to have a lesser punishment if he worked on my ship. And what if you had made a different deal with him? You could be planning on mutiny as soon as I had my back turned."

"That's some bullshit excuse you have for not trusting me you fucking bastard! And I know that you know it." Marine shouted angrily, causing Elizabeth to jump in surprise. Jack said nothing as he emptied his bottle and placed it on the table. "You're just afraid that I might kill you or run away or something and it would ruin your chances of escaping death from her."

"If that was my intention then I wouldn't have agreed to you leaving my ship as soon as we reached our destination."

"It didn't matter if you agreed to it or not! You still have a month of Carrie and I being stuck on this blasted boat. You and your bloody conspirator can still find some way to catch Carrie and I off-guard. Then once you hand us over to the clone, you can go on with your bloody life like nothing happened. Isn't that right pirate?" She spat the last word angrily.

"Well since you put it that way why don't you take one of the row boats on my ship and get out of my sight now? You don't have to worry about me chasing after you 'cause I'm not going to waste my efforts of something as shallow as that." This made Marine's blood boil and she felt her face grow hot. A red puddle grew on the floor as she dropped the bottle of rum to the floor. She gritted her teeth and suddenly stood up from the chair, deliberately knocking it back in her anger. The sound of the chair crashing on the floor didn't faze Jack one bit.

"Fine. Thank you for the safe passage Captain Bloody Jack Sparrow. I hope we never see each other again or I'll stick a sword up your ass, cut you up into little bloody pieces and feed you to the bloody sharks." Marine said in a cold and calm tone before walking away from the galley and back up the main deck. Elizabeth widened her eyes in surprise and looked at Jack, half-expecting him to stop the female pirate. When he didn't do anything she followed Marine up the stairs as quickly as she could.

"Wait! Please don't do this Marine. Aren't you jumping into conclusions too quickly? I don't think this is a good idea." The young blond haired woman cried. Marine ignored her protests and made her way to where the row boats were. Other people who were on the main deck stopped what they were doing to watch the scene in confusion and curiosity. Carrie, who was still up at the crow's nest, looked down at the sound of the commotion and made her way to Marine.

"Hey Vanessa! What's going on?" She asked. Marine's head was looking around in search of something when Carrie came and said nothing in reply to the other woman's question. After her eyes set its sight on a length of rope that was tied from the row boat to the ship, she moved towards it and began to untie it. Carrie began to sense trouble and frowned at her best friend worriedly.

"Vanessa?" Marine still said nothing, even while she was lowering the boat onto the water. It didn't take long for everyone else on board to realize what Marine intended to do. Carrie immediately turned her head to face the other blond haired woman. "Elizabeth, what is going on?"

"She and Jack had an argument at the galley..." Elizabeth began just as Gibbs and Norrington arrived to see what was going on. "Jack angered her by telling her to leave the ship and I think Marine's going to go through with it." Gibbs widened his eyes in surprise while Norrington raised an eyebrow skeptically.

"You're leaving the ship just because you had an argument with Sparrow? I didn't think that you are that short-tempered." The former Commodore said. "And what you're about to do is just plain foolish. There's not an island in sight and that boat can only carry enough provisions for you to last for a month at least - probably not enough for you to reach land on time. You'll die before you can get anywhere."

"Well the problem with food doesn't matter because I'm not getting any from the Black Pearl. Worse case scenario is I starve myself to death and that is better than being captured by my clone." Norrington widened his eyes at this news.

"But that's a mad idea! Leaving the Black Pearl now to seek refuge on a small defenseless boat would only give your clone an even better chance to get you."

"Even if that is so," Marine spoke as she looked down at the boat below. "Staying here on this bloody ship will only let the clone catch me quicker." Norrington and Carrie looked at Marine in confusion but both Gibbs and Elizabeth looked at each other knowingly. It was only they who had been there during the discussion between Jack and Marine; only they knew what the female pirate meant by what she said. Marine ignored everyone else as she looked at Carrie and held up a hand when the other woman was about to go towards her. "You stay here with the others Carrie. It's better this way."

"What do you mean?" Carrie asked with a worried frown. "What are you talking about? We're both in this together Vanessa! If you're going to run away from the clone then isn't it a good idea that I come with you as well?" The female pirate shook her head in reply.

"It doesn't matter where you go. My clone can't and won't do anything to you since you're not the person she's after. AnaMaria and the others have custody of your clone so there's no chance of her going after you while you're on the Black Pearl. You'll be much safer here than with me."

"But..."

"Carrie for once in your life why don't you think with your head rather than you heart?!" Marine snapped as she slammed her fist on the wooden railings. "You've been acting like a 5 year old who wants to go on a bloody adventure without knowing what the consequences are or how hard it truly is. You think pirating is great and cool and that being a pirate is fun. You think that you're going to be invincible as long as you're a pirate and you think that there are people like Jack Sparrow who have a good heart. Things like that are not real and are just a load of crap! So stop floating around in that dream bubble of yours and act your own age. You're not a pirate and you'll never be one no matter how much you try or how much you want to be!" Carrie was startled by Marine's anger and for a moment she stood there in shock. Marine thought that they were done so she turned around and continued to prepare for her departure. Then all of a sudden Carrie touched her shoulder and turned her back to face her. What Marine saw was a young blond haired woman glaring back at her with tears flowing down her eyes. The hands that were holding her shoulder tightened.

"What the hell is wrong with you Vanessa?! You're the one who's acting like a child who didn't get what she wanted. Do you think that I don't know all that? That I don't know the difference between what's good and what's bad? I'm not a child who can't think. I know what I'm doing Vanessa. You're the one who doesn't seem to know what to do. All this time you've been trying to act out on your own because you think that only you can save us or only you can do whatever it is that you're supposed to do. But the truth is, you've done nothing at all to help out! Everyone else has been trying so hard...and all you do is push them away. You're a bloody pirate Vanessa! And I know that you're supposedly the most feared pirate in the whole Caribbean Seas. But I also know for a fact that you're not evil and you're not a bad person. We're both supposed to be normal women who have no experience in piracy and fighting. But because of what happened to you, you think that you're better than I am and that's not fair! Why won't you let me experience the same things you did? Why won't you let me learn how to fight with a sword or how to sail on a ship? Is it because you're jealous that I'll become better than you are? Is that it?"

"If you think that's true then you're a bloody idiot! Do you think I enjoy all this? You think that I'm not bad or that I'm not a criminal but I fight the Royal Navy. I steal swords and other goods from merchant ships and I kill people. I'm a dangerous criminal who has a warrant on her head and who has the whole Royal Navy eager to bring me to the hangman's noose. Everyday I have to worry about someone finding out that I'm a pirate and sending guards to come after me. Every night I have to sleep with my eyes open because there might be someone who has a grudge on me and want to kill me in my moment of weakness. Every single minute is spent trying to control other people who have allied themselves with me because there's a chance that at the next minute they'll suddenly stab you in the back and throw you out into the sea or give you away to someone else. I don't want to be a pirate but because of my bloody past I have to deal with it. I do not enjoy being a bloody pirate! Stick that through your thick head."

Carrie was about to open her mouth and say something but Marine interrupted her. She couldn't stop herself. Everything that she had kept hidden inside her had began to pour out at the moment she snapped at her best friend. Tears were falling from the female pirate's face as she went on.

"You make it sound so easy Carrie. You read all those books and watch movies about piracy and think 'gee, being a pirate looks cool! I want to become one too.' But you don't even know the half of it. You barely experienced the true life of a pirate when you were almost killed by that man back at the brig. Can you do it Carrie? Can you grab a sword and stab someone without feeling sorry for him or feeling disgusted at yourself for it? No matter how hard you try to avoid it, you'll always end up in a situation where you have to kill or be killed. You might think that it's easy because you see me kill people but you have no idea how hard it is. I don't want you to go through the same thing I did the first time I killed someone. Every night for at least two months, I have dreams of all the men I've killed. I could hear them all scream in pain as they took their last breaths. I dream of seeing all of their blood on my hands and watching their dead corpses float around in my mind. I almost killed myself back then because I couldn't take all the guilt of it. You want that Carrie? That's going to be part of being a real pirate."

"And you know what's worse? As soon as you become a pirate there is no such thing as true loyalty. You will never be able to trust anyone one hundred percent because pirates are always meant to lie, cheat and betray others. You might think that they'll always be there for you but all pirates think about is themselves. You'll never find someone who cares about another person enough to risk their lives or to be there for you whether you're going through a good or bad time in your life. He's a very good example of not putting all of your trust in a pirate." Almost all heads turned when Marine pointed. And they saw Jack Sparrow standing by the stairs that led to the deck below. "You think he's a good pirate Carrie, but he's just like the rest of them. Do you know that he spoke with my clone before? She was going to get him to give me up in exchange for his life. He might not have agreed now but he is Jack Sparrow. You've seen what he is capable of Carrie. And don't lie to me about not knowing it. We both know that he can stand on one side and switch to the opposing side without any problems at all. There is no such thing as a good pirate; it's useless to think otherwise. The reason I'm riding on that row boat is so that Sparrow can't give me up to my clone. Now you know. I'm sick and tired of always having to keep an eye on you everytime you do something so why don't you go away and wait for your bloody turn to get in trouble so you can experience first hand how it truly feels to be in hell!" Without waiting for a reply or a reaction, Marine grabbed the railings and hoisted herself over.

Carrie was startled with her sudden movement and rushed towards the railings while shouting out her best friend's name. She saw Marine on the row boat holding the oars and preparing to row away. Elizabeth and the others followed the blond haired woman, gathering at her sides and leaning forward from the railings, but they said nothing. Jack stood still and continued to watch in silence like an audience in a theater. It was Carrie who had the last word, just before the oars hit the surface of the water.

"Fine! Go ahead and run away from your problems." Carrie shouted just before a sob escaped from her mouth. "That's the only thing you've been doing since we came into this blasted so-called adventure of ours right? You've run away from fighting your clone, you've run away from truly confronting me about this, and now you're running away from Jack and from the problem that you can't handle. It's your fault that your foster parents are dead do you know that? It's your fault! They died because they were going to go to my house and help me look for you. They were so worried about you; they cared about you so much and had no idea that they were going to die that day! And you just sit there, rowing like all of this is nothing to you and making an ass of yourself! How could you do this to them after everything they've done for you? I can't believe that I ever thought that you would always be there for me because now I see that you're nothing but a coward! I hate you Vanessa and I wish that I never met you because if I didn't then I wouldn't be in this mess in the first place."

Marine said nothing as Carrie shouted and, once the younger woman was done, began to row as hard and as quickly as she could. There were no tears in her eyes then; she had used up most of it in her long speech. As she held on the oars and rowed, she felt her strength fading away quickly; shouting and letting her emotions run free had drained her. All she wanted to do now was lie down on the small boat and let whatever higher being was up there decide on her fate. But she wouldn't give them all the satisfaction of seeing her in that kind of a state. Gritting her teeth and continuing her rowing, Marine closed her eyes and gave out her first sob. She hasn't run out of that one yet.

Carrie gripped the railings tight and watched the boat Marine was on move farther and farther away from them. She closed her eyes as she felt more tears spring from her eyes and felt her knees grow weak. There goes her only remaining link to her world from before. There goes the only person in the world they were in who knows her past and her childhood. Now she was worse than any ordinary person; she was an outcast now. Someone who should never have existed in that world to begin with. No one would be there to keep her company and truly understand her as a person from a hundred years in the future. Elizabeth rushed to the Carrie's side as she sunk to the ground and began to cry quietly. She placed her arms around the other woman and held her there without saying anything, trying to comfort her and yet knowing that it wouldn't really make things right. Gibbs looked at Jack who had slowly made his way to the group when Marine had jumped off the main deck.

"What are your orders captain?" He asked him softly. Jack looked at the small boat as well and gripped the bottle of rum he held in his hand tighter.

"What else? We go on sailing like before. Get me a map and come to my cabin. We're going to have to discuss the most likely route AnaMaria's ship will follow and meet them before they reach their destination." Gibbs nodded in silence while Jack turned around and made his way to his cabin. Carter, who had seen everything together with the rest of the crew, went to Elizabeth and Carrie.

"Let me help you bring her to a cabin Mrs. Turner." He said. Elizabeth nodded to him gratefully and let him go to Carrie's side while she held on to the other. They easily lifted the young woman and slowly dragged her to the cabin like a lifeless corpse. As she remembered the times when both Carrie and Marine were speaking to each other, laughing and having fun in this strange and exciting adventure, Elizabeth felt her heart break at the sight of two best friends breaking apart when they should be staying side by side. She looked up to the sky and prayed that everything would turn out right in the end. And that was when her eyes caught something beyond the horizon. She frowned at what she saw and stopped walking together with Carrie and Carter. Her head frantically searched and saw Jack's retreating form.

"Jack! Jack!" She shouted. The pirate stopped and turned to her direction. He looked just as bad as Carrie and Marine were. Not physically, of course; the blond haired woman could see that overall Jack was fine. But his face and his eyes gave out all the emotions he tired to keep hidden inside of him. The way his stiff body moved also told her that Jack was not relaxed nor does he have a peace of mind. Elizabeth knew that whether Jack admitted it or not, he was just as distraught and upset as the women were. But that had to be dealt with at another time. Elizabeth used her free hand to point at the direction where she had seen the problem and looked at the pirate. "Jack there's going to be trouble ahead of us if we don't do something." As if on her cue, the whole ship trembled with a terrifying roar that echoed loudly through the open waters. Gibbs saw it as well and looked at the captain worriedly.

"Jack? What about...what about..." He couldn't finish his sentence and looked down at the floor in silence. Jack looked at where Elizabeth pointed and felt his frown grow at what he saw. He grunted in reply to what Gibbs said as he took out his telescope and peered through the small hole for a moment. But for a few moments he could only stand there and look, his whole consciousness fighting over what he was going to do; what decisions he had to make. Calculations ran wildly through his brain as he tried to pick out the best move. With a sharp snapping sound he closed his telescope and hooked it onto his belt. His free hand rose and he stared at the bottle of rum in his hand; the second bottle of rum that Marine had taken out of the cupboards. He gripped it tightly then emptied it in one swig. Throwing the bottle into the sea, he strode towards the helm while shouting orders at his crew.

He had come to a decision and for the first time in his life he wondered if it was the right one or not.

* * *

Four people were standing at the brig, watching a prisoner who was behind bars sit down and stare back at them. None of them spoke or did anything, making the sound of water dropping onto the ground seem louder than normal. Carrie's clone was playing on the floor with her shoe then, after a while longer, looked up and glared at everyone standing outside the cell. 

"What the hell are you guys doing here? Aren't you all supposed to be out there sailing this ship or something?" Jones looked at the group as he scratched the back of his head.

"Wow they really do sound exactly the same..."

"Gee thanks for stating the obvious Sherlock." Carrie piped in sarcasm. The thief looked at Carrie in surprise and gave her a nervous smile.

"You must have mistaken me for someone else. I'm not Sherlock. My name is Jones Westley." The clone gave a frustrated sigh and a roll of her eyes. Then she turned around so that her back was facing them.

"Just go away and leave me alone..." She grumbled, playing with her fingers like they were the most interesting thing in the world. AnaMaria nodded to the rest of the group and was the first to walk away from the brig. Will, Cornelius and Jones followed her to the main deck where they huddled together closely to keep others from eavesdropping.

"Now I demand an explanation from all of you or I'm throwing you out of my ship." AnaMaria warned the three men with her arms crossed. "What does this twin want from the other Carrie and why is there someone chasing you and trying to kill you lot?" The three men looked at each other hesitantly before looking back at the other woman.

"I guess we can tell you the whole story...but it's a pretty long one. And by listening to it you might also be targeted by them." Will began.

"Bringing you along on this ship has already given me my death sentence I'm sure. I might as well know the whole story if I'm going to help you out in as much ways as I can. I deserve that much from you." The dark skinned woman said. Will gave a small chuckle at that and nodded his approval to Cornelius. The older man took a deep breath as he held AnaMaria's hand and began leading her to the captain's cabin.

"Let's see...it all started when my friends and I found this strange chest in Mexico..." As Cornelius spoke, the whole group found themselves making their way to AnaMaria's cabin. Will and Jones didn't listen much to the conversation since they already knew the story and experienced most of it first-hand. They were the ones who helped lead the group. Will was the one who opened the door to the captain's room and Jones entered first to bring up four chairs towards a small table. While Cornelius continued his storytelling and AnaMaria continued to listen, Will and Jones left the room and came back one hour later bearing meals and drinks for all four of them.

AnaMaria didn't know what to say or how to react to everything that Cornelius was telling her. It wasn't like she didn't understand what the older man was telling her; it didn't take a genius to realize what had happened and it only took some imagination and blind faith to truly believe the things that have occurred. It was like the time they were fighting against Barbossa and the cursed crew. The story did take a while to be told, and AnaMaria only noticed how late it had become when she saw the meal and felt her stomach rumble slightly. She had also noticed that slowly as time passed on, Cornelius' body slumped backward onto the chair. The lids of his gray eyes were slowly closing by themselves, and his wrinkled, sunken and sallow face - with his dry lips turned down into a small frown - spoke much of what he was feeling. By this time the older man was wrapping it up and, once he saw Will and Jones with food, gave a weary sigh and patted the dark skinned woman on the shoulder. His lips quivered as he gave AnaMaria a small smile that never reached his eyes.

"Well that's the last bit of the story we're in so far. And now we're here in your ship, headed to the same island where Jack and the rest of the group are headed for as well. Do you have any questions that you want me to answer?" He asked. AnaMaria thought for a while before shaking her head.

"No, you've pretty much covered all the topics without missing any sort of important detail. Now all I need to know is where we're headed for." Cornelius smiled gratefully at Will who passed him a plate filled with hot food an quickly drank the water from his mug before looking back at AnaMaria with an apologetic look.

"Um...if you don't mind, I prefer to keep that information to myself for now. It's not safe to let a lot of people know our next location; in case someone decides to betray us and spill out all the information he knows about us to the enemy. To make you feel a bit better and just so you won't feel that you're being treated unfairly, the only other living person who knows the location is Marine." AnaMaria frowned at the older man but she sighed and nodded concededly.

"I guess I can let you go for that one. We'll find out about it eventually." She took the other plate and eating utensils that Jones held out and after placing it on the table began to eat heartily. The other three men followed her shortly and they began to talk about other things aside from the clones and the fights. They all knew that there was no point in discussing something so upsetting when they can't do anything about it. But then there was one other significant matter that they had to discuss.

"What are we going to do about the lass? Who's going to be responsible for her while she's here on your ship?" Cornelius asked in the middle of putting a piece of meat into his mouth. AnaMaria grimaced as she took a drink from her mug.

"Must we? Can't we just leave her there until we meet up with Jack and the others?" She asked. The older man shook his head.

"As much as I would love to take you up on that offer, we cannot let the clone die before Carrie...merges with her." He explained. "If she dies, her soul will be lost forever, leaving Carrie with nothing but her own half; and that just won't do lass." His head turned to Will and Jones. "One thing is for sure, we cannot let Carrie interact with someone she knows. It gives her more chances to find a means of escape. The person who shall take charge of her must not be weak willed and must prefer to stay silent than to speak." Will looked at AnaMaria in question.

"Do you have anyone in your crew who fits the description? Someone who won't ask too many questions about what he's ordered to do and will follow the order to the letter." AnaMaria furrowed her brows as she swirled the contents of her mug slowly.

"Aye perhaps I might have just the man ye need. I'll speak to him after we've finished our meals." She said. But it seemed that she was not going to have the chance because right at that moment, her first mate knocked on the door furiously. The man outside didn't wait for the door to open and instead began shouting through the wooden frame.

"Captain! Captain! There's trouble ahead and we be needing ye to get here on deck." AnaMaria looked at the three other men in the room anxiously as she stood up and made her way to the door. Everyone went out of AnaMaria's cabin and looked beyond the horizon, at the spot where the crew's eyes were glued on with shock and horror. What the dark skinned woman saw made her say colorful words under her breath and made her stride to the helm as quickly as she could while shouting orders to her crew. Cornelius and Will ran onto the center and began to help the crew tie ropes and load guns. Jones continued to look, and shook his head in disbelief.

"By gods that is the most troublesome obstacle we've encountered yet."


	23. Two Battles, Same Result

**AN:** Sorry for the long delay. I've been doing other stuff for my college subjects and the like. Anyways, here's the next chapter. Hope you enjoy! Read and Review please.

* * *

_**"One moment I could still see them and the next they're gone!" - Elizabeth Swann**_

**Chapter 23 - Two Battles, Same Result**

"Jones! What the hell are ye doing standing there and staring?! Come over here and give us a hand!" AnaMaria shouted angrily as they continued to move forward. The dark skinned woman turned the wheel sharply to the right, sending some of the things and people on deck to sway to the left. Jones lost his balance with the woman's antics and with nothing to hold on to, fell to the ground with a loud thud. He grumbled and cursed as he got back to his feet and looked at the others who were quickly preparing the cannons on the main deck.

"JONES!"

"All right! All right! Keep yer shirts on!" He shouted irritatingly in return as he made his way to Will who was helping another crew member load the cannons. The blacksmith looked at Cornelius and, when they finished preparing the cannon, walked towards the older man and held his shoulder to get his attention.

"Cornelius! Do you have any ideas on how to get that thing away from us?" He asked, pointing to the large dark blue figure on the water as it moved to the same direction the ship was turning to. The older man looked at the snake, then at Will, then back again.

"I don't know lad...there's not a curse surrounding the snake and we have no control over it. I have no idea what its weakness is so the best thing I could suggest in battling that snake would be to run away from it as quickly as we could."

"Well that plan is pretty useless now as you can see." Jones piped in as he pointed at the snake who had moved in synch with the ship. "That creature is ten times faster than this ship is. It would crush us to death before we could get the chance to escape." He added. Cornelius sighed.

"Aye, guess it won't work that way then. We could try and fight against the snake. Though winning against that beast sounds unlikely..."

"Maybe we could distract it." Will suggested. "Distract it long enough for us to fire at it or slow it down...that's it!" A bright twinkle came to Will's eyes as an idea popped into his head. Without saying anything to Cornelius and Jones he ran towards the helm where AnaMaria was busy steering. He tapped her shoulder to get her attention and began to speak wildly with that bright mischievous looking eye twinkling.

"AnaMaria I want you to go near the snake and distract it with guns and the like for a few minutes." The dark skinned woman stared at Will as if he had gotten an extra head.

"What in blazes are you talking about? Are ye mad? Look at the size of that thing! We won't have a chance against it." She cried in disbelief. Will shook his head as AnaMaria tried to turn the wheel again, away from the direction of the sea snake. He grabbed it and stopped her from steering. The dark skinned woman glared at Will and raised a finger in front of him. "Now listen here Mr. Turner. I'm Captain of this ship and I don't like risking my life senselessly for something that only you will greatly benefit in."

"You don't have to risk your life senselessly because I'll be the one executing the plan I have in mind. All you have to do is let me use a cannon and the anchor and distract the snake together with the crew for a few minutes."

"But that means I have to sacrifice some of my men." She protested.

"Well that's better than having everyone, including yourself, dead right?" He countered. "Please AnaMaria, you must let me do this or we're all going to die!" The other woman still hesitated, but after a second of watching the snake swim on the surface of the water patiently, sighed and nodded concededly. Will sighed in relief and turned his head towards Jones who was still helping the other men.

"Jones! Come over here and bring a cannon with you." He cried amidst the sounds of AnaMaria ordering her own crew to be steady and wait for her command to fire. Everyone could feel the ship turn once more as AnaMaria steered towards the direction of the snake. The thief stopped what he was doing to look at Will in question. But Will had already turned his head away from the other man and was reaching for the anchor that was hanging near the bow of the ship. Jones suppressed a sigh as he grabbed one of the unused cannons and made his way to the young blacksmith. He arrived and after making sure that the cannon wasn't going to move walked back to where most of the crew members were to get gunpowder.

At this time the snake was becoming restless and before anyone could react, it quickly charged at them and crashed onto the hull of the ship. The sudden collision sent everyone falling down to the ground and temporarily ceasing whatever they were doing. Will dropped his hold on the anchor and cursed as he watched it fall back then swing slightly from the force of the fall. He stood straight and looked around then stopped one of the men who was running about the deck.

"You! Come with me and help me bring the anchor up onto the deck." The man hesitated as he looked at his captain steering at the helm apprehensively. Will saw this and snapped in irritation and impatience. "Whatever you're doing will be taken care of by someone else. I'll be responsible for you so you won't be reprimanded by your captain. Now hurry up and help me or we're all going to be lost in the seas!" The man finally agreed and moved to Will's side as they began to lift the chains of the anchor once more.

AnaMaria grunted as she fell to the ground together with the rest at the snake's contact to the hull. As the Captain of the ship and the one steering them, she felt obligated to be one of the first to recover and stood up as quickly as she could. Turning the wheel to the side, the dark skinned pirate moved the ship so that its starboard side was facing the snake. That side was filled with loaded cannons and men who were both afraid and eager to face the monstrous beast before them. Cornelius was among those men and, urging some of the others to follow his lead, took out a sword from its sheath. Seeing the older man unfazed and prepared to fight gave courage to most of the men surrounding him. AnaMaria was glad to see her men prepared to fight as well and waited for the right time to give the order.

Jones had grabbed one of the sacks that was filled with gunpowder lying to one man's side and ran as fast as he could to where Will was. He saw him together with one of AnaMaria's men bringing the anchor onto the deck but had no time to wonder what they were going to do with it. As he was running across the deck the snake gave a shrill, ear-piercing cry and suddenly rose to its full vertical length. It paused there for a few seconds before falling forward towards them. Some of the men suddenly stepped back in fear but AnaMaria saw this and narrowed her eyes at them.

"Hold your ground you cowards! Hold your ground!" To her relief the men did as she ordered and looked back at the snake. There were hands holding swords that trembled and others felt their feet suddenly rooted to the ground as they stared at the snake's fangs in horror. Jones saw a shadow on the ground that began to grow larger and larger and stopped running. When he looked up and saw the snake coming closer to them with its wide mouth hanging open, he paled and gave a short cry of fright. At the same time the dark skinned woman gripped the steering wheel tightly and shouted with as much vigor as she could muster.

"FIRE!!"

Cannons were fired and explosions erupted continuously at AnaMaria's command, causing the whole ship to tremble from the recoil. The snake gave a loud shriek of pain as a rain of cannon balls attacked it and fell back from the force of the guns into the water with a loud splash. None of the men waited to look at their work and began to reload the cannons as quickly as they could. Jones had fallen down to the ground and flinched as the sounds of the firing startled him. AnaMaria watched the snake stay underwater with a sort of relief and looked for Will only to find him pressed down by the weight of the anchor.

"Will! You've got to hurry while the snake is still down! I don't think we'll be able to distract it for much longer." She shouted. The blacksmith and the man who was helping him had lost their balance during the fire and the small tremble of the ship which caused their hands to slip. The anchor dropped to the ground with a loud thud and fell back as Will tried to catch it. He fell down together with it and felt his breath taken away from him as it fell on top of him. While the other man was trying to move it away from Will, the blacksmith looked to the side and saw Jones still cowering on the ground.

"Jones! Bring the gunpowder and load the cannon. Hurry!" He shouted and winced when pain erupted from his upper body. There were probably a couple of broken ribs that he was going to deal with after everything was over; he wasn't looking forward to it. At hearing his name, the thief looked up and began to stagger to his wobbly feet. His head turned to the side where the snake had fallen and frowned when he saw it slowly coming back to the surface. The crew members were shouting at each other, trying to help those who were taking too slow, and once they saw the snake recovering began to move even faster. Jones grabbed the sack and began to run towards Will again this time ignoring all the commotion surrounding him.

For a second time cannons were fired and the snake shrieked again. But instead of falling into the water it fell towards some of the men who were firing cannons. Men screamed as the snake collapsed on the deck and sent debris and splinters of wood flying about. Fortunately for AnaMaria there was no hole on the ship but the snake had practically destroyed the whole starboard side of her ship; a few more smashes like that and the whole ship was going to fall apart. The cannon that Jones had brought to the bow earlier suddenly jumped as the snake fell onto the deck and began to move back. The man who was helping Will finally moved the anchor aside and began to gather up the chains. Will gasped as the weight was lifted from him and took deep breaths gratefully. But when he turned his head to the side once more he saw the moving cannon and widened his eyes in panic.

"Jones! Watch out!" He shouted. The thief could see the cannon headed his way and cursed profusely for his unbelievable stroke of bad luck that day. Just before the cannon could hit him and knock him down, he jumped out of the way. The cannon continued to roll with speed until it hit one of AnaMaria's men dead straight and slowed down, sending the victim crashing onto the rail and falling into the water. Other men were holding their swords and were shouting battle cries as they charged at the fallen snake. Cornelius raised his hand in the air and brought it down to the creature's eye as hard as he could. It screamed and swerved its head from side to side violently, sending Cornelius and a few men who were near flying backwards.

"Will!" AnaMaria shouted as she watched more and more of her men fall down. Will, who was standing up, tried to shout back but felt another surge of pain run through his body and placed his hands on his knees. It was difficult to breathe and speaking made it worse. He looked up at Jones who was running towards the cannon that had moved and was cursing loudly all the while.

"Cornelius move your bloody ass out of the way!" The thief shouted angrily as he pushed aside the older man who was slowly sitting up from the ground. He saw the cannon, sitting near bodies both dead and injured and grumbled as he stepped carefully through the mess. Then he poured the gunpowder into the cannon, tossed it away to god knows where, and moved towards the butt of the cannon. After kicking a body that was blocking the cannon aside, - and muttering an apology as he did so - Jones placed his hands on the cannon and pushed as hard as he could.

He went past the snake that was slowly recovering from the pain and raised its body in the air as high as it could. Then with another roar it came smashing down onto the deck once more, rocking the ship violently. Jones slipped and fell forward, hitting the butt of the cannon as a result. He groaned in pain and saw stars swimming around his sight. Will saw that the cannon had stopped moving and turned to the man who was helping him.

"Get the cannon...put in the anchor..." The man stared at Will incredulously but seeing him in his state and the sudden mad glint that came to the blacksmith's eyes frightened the man a little. He nodded to Will then ran towards Jones as quickly as he could and moved him to the side gently. Then he himself began to push the cannon towards Will's spot. Jones continued to groan as he slowly sat up and rubbed his jaw painfully. He looked at where the snake was and saw the men trying to struggle with the snake's moving head. Irritation and anger surged through the thief's whole body. He felt a rush of adrenaline and quickly stood up, swaying a bit before getting his balance. He ignored everyone surrounding him as he stomped towards the snake. Cornelius, who was trying to lead the men during the fight, stopped to stare incredulously at the thief who walked past him.

"Jones! What in the hell do you think you're doing? Get back here!" He shouted in slight panic. The thief gave no reply as he continued to make his way towards the sea snake. The creature was roaring and moving its head side to side until it saw Jones with its remaining right eye and stopped. Jones stopped right in front of the snake and began to kick and punch the snake's upper lip furiously.

"Goddamn bloody snake! I have had it with you and your bloody shrieks and your stupid fangs! Because of your bloody arrival my day has been nothing but bloody brilliant! Why don't you stay still so we can shoot you into bloody pieces and go on with our bloody lives!" He shouted. Cornelius stared and wanted to laugh but couldn't. Watching Jones fist fight with the snake like a child in a tantrum was so hilarious and shocking that everyone was stunned into silence. AnaMaria saw the sight and placed a hand on her face while sighing in frustration and mumbling 'daft as Jack' to herself. To everyone's surprise the snake began to slide back into the water. Jones gave one last punch that missed the snake entirely and because of the force he put into it, spun around in a circle like a top before falling to the ground.

Everyone half-believed that Jones had scared off the snake until they saw it rise above the water and loom over the ship, preparing to smash onto the deck one more time. Jones felt the remains of his fury ebb away and paled when he saw the snake's body in front of him. He began to move back on his hands and knees; crawling over bodies as quickly as he could while staring at the snake with wide, frightened eyes. The snake began to fall down and unfortunately was still within reach of Jones. The thief stopped and raised his hands above him in a small attempt to defend himself, screaming loudly as he did. AnaMaria was just as scared as Jones was for she knew that this time the ship will get a hole and sink into the waters. She turned her gaze at Will who was standing by the cannon and was aiming it at the snake.

"WILL!"

"For god's sake Will, fire already!"

"AHHHHHHH!!!"

* * *

Marine tightened her mouth after the last sob came out of her and rubbed her face with her sleeves. She willed herself to stop sobbing and crying, feeling sorry for herself and the like. If she continued on the way she was, she was never going to get anywhere. So after taking a deep breath, she gripped the oars tightly and began to row once more. 

She didn't see the very dark clouds above her, but she did see the Black Pearl headed towards her in a speed faster than her rowing. One eyebrow raised skeptically as she watched the ship slow down when it neared her boat. People were running about the deck agitatedly, working as quickly and as hard as they could. Still she continued to row with no intention of stopping for Jack and his ship. A head peered from the rail and looked down at her on the boat.

"Marine!" Gibbs shouted. He watched the female pirate ignore her and continue rowing with a frown. "Marine lass, stop rowing and get back into the ship! There's a storm coming and if you don't get here quickly you'll not survive its waves." He said. Marine frowned at him then turned around to look up at the dark clouds and the ominous skies. From her experience she knew that it was going to be a very big and dangerous storm. Nevertheless, she looked up at Gibbs with irritation on her face.

"Why should I? Sparrow told me to leave and I am leaving! I'm not going back onto that bloody boat while he's there."

"Please Marine, think carefully. Do you really think it wise to continue aboard that small boat?" Marine placed a finger to her chin and pretended to be in deep thought. After a moment she looked back at him and grinned.

"Yes. I think staying here is a wiser decision than going back into that boat. Bye!"

"Wait! Marine!" Gibbs heaved a weary sigh as Marine continued to row and looked at Jack who was watching the whole scene with his lips twitching in irritation. Jack wasn't planning on leaving the helm for as long as he could but seeing Gibbs' first plan fail, knew that there was no other choice for him but to go there and get the stubborn lass himself. He called for Cotton who immediately came to take over the wheel then went down the stairs slowly and casually. He walked past Gibbs and placed a hand on the rails as he looked down at where Marine and the boat was. The female pirate didn't notice him yet; she was too busy rowing and ignoring the ship beside her to do so.

All of a sudden she heard a splash and she jumped in surprise. Her head immediately shot up at Gibbs who was staring at her with shock. Then her eyes roamed downwards and saw a ripple not far from her boat. Assuming that they had dropped something - whether accidentally or on purpose she didn't want to know - she went back to rowing as quickly as she could. But as she went on, she suddenly felt a strong tug from the right oar. Instinctively she raised the left oar and sent it flying over her head and towards the thing that was grabbing the other oar as hard as she could. There was a loud crack, followed by a splutter and a gasp as a head came out of the surface. Marine gave a short scream of surprise as she leaned backwards and watched a head with braided dreadlocks shake off water.

"What the bloody hell was that for?!" Jack cried as he grabbed the edge of Marine's boat. The female pirate narrowed her eyes at Jack and smacked his hands with the oar she held. Jack immediately let go of the boat and glared up at the woman. Marine went closer to Jack and, on her hands and knees, leaned forward from the edge of the boat.

"Serves you right for trying to grab my oar you bloody fool!" Jack was struggling to keep afloat as he flailed his hands and spoke.

"Well...you won't stop rowing!" Marine moved back and sat down on the boat. Then she grabbed the oar that Jack had tugged and wasn't surprised this time when she couldn't fully take it. Jack held the other end of the oar and was pulling it towards him. Then female pirate pulled with so much force that Jack bumped on the edge of the boat.

"Give me one good reason why I should get back on your boat." She growled, nearing her face to his. Jack pulled the oar with just as much force and made her move closer towards him.

"Unless you've become blind or got another extra ship there," He scanned her body up and down and made Marine's eyebrow twitch with irritation. "There's a storm coming and you're not going to survive on that little boat." Marine pulled her end of the oar again and made sure that Jack bumped hard on the side.

"But being on your boat is better?" Jack pulled back and Marine had to clutch at the edge tightly so she wouldn't fall into the water.

"Well it's larger that's for sure. Your boat will fall apart before my ship does." He hissed. Marine pulled once more which caused Jack to hit his face on the boat.

"I.DON'T.CARE. You can take your boat and shove it up your ass!" Jack had enough and with as much strength as he could muster pulled on the oar. Marine gave another short cry of surprise as she realized that she couldn't grasp something to support herself and fell into the water with a splash. Jack used that moment to go up the boat and draw deep exhausted breaths as he lied down. He had grown weary from trying to stay above the water and was glad to have gotten aboard just before he felt his legs give way. As he was trying to catch his breath, Marine came out of the water as well, spluttering and coughing out water that had entered her mouth. Then she swam closer to the edge of the boat, her head slowly filling up with murderous ideas concerning a certain pirate. By that time, Jack had recovered and helped Marine get into the boat. He staggered back as the female pirate slapped his hand away.

"Let me go dammit! I told you I don't want to go with you so fuck off!" Jack firmly grabbed her shoulders violently and forced her to face him. Marine was startled by Jack's movements and couldn't react in time to struggle. She stared at the pirate, whose face was contorted in anger and whose eyes were lit up with fury, and felt her previous anger disappear immediately.

"Listen here you irritating wench!" Jack growled as he neared his face to hers. Marine glanced sideways, trying to avoid looking at him. But Jack grabbed her chin and pulled it even closer to him. "Look at me when I'm talking to you! I have had enough of your little dramatic acts. If you want a bloody reason why I want you on my ship then let me tell you something! I've gone through a lot of trouble the past few months helping you out whether you like it or not. There have been too many men on my crew that have died during our trip. I've done nothing to hurt you or to betray you from your bloody clone so don't you start accusing me. I bloody risked my life to keep you alive and I'm not going to let you waste all my efforts and kill yourself just because you're a god damn stubborn spoiled brat!"

Marine's head was filled with a lot of things, and they were mostly leaning towards the option of relenting to Jack and going into his ship without any more protests. But when she heard Jack call her a 'spoiled brat', all thoughts were flushed down into the drain. Her anger was once more refueled and she clenched her hands into tight fists while glaring at Jack intensely.

"Spoiled brat?! You're calling me a spoiled brat?!" She shouted at him, no longer feeling any pain on her shoulders. "Well look who's talking Mr. I-get-whatever-I-want-because-I'm-a-bloody-pirate! You've lied, cheated and betrayed a lot of people just to save your stupid butt only god knows how many times."

"And you haven't?"

"How many times do I have to shout it out to the whole world? I didn't want to become a bloody pirate! I hate being a bloody pirate because I had to do all those immoral things. And if it wasn't for my bloody real parents and that stupid cursed Aztec Treasure none of this would have happened and I wouldn't have met you! Because you've been nothing but trouble in my life Jack Sparrow! I regret ever knowing you and if I had the chance, I would kill myself before I ever knew who you were!"

Right at that moment the cracking, ear-splitting sound of lightning reached their ears. Marine and Jack both jumped in surprise and turned their heads to the direction the storm was coming from. But there was nothing else to see there but dark clouds. For a moment they were sailing under a clear blue sky. Then in a flash rain came pouring down from the clouds and drenched everyone from head to toe. A strong wind picked up and the waves began to crash against both the Black Pearl and the little boat. Marine sat down on the little boat and clutched the edges to keep herself from falling overboard. She looked up at Jack and was surprised to see him still standing and managing to balance himself on the rocky boat. He looked right back at her and held out his hand expectantly.

"Get on the Black Pearl!" He shouted as loud as he could above the noise of the storm. Marine wiped her face with her hand before narrowing her eyes at him.

"No!" Jack's lips thinned and he closed his eyes as he took a deep breath, trying to control his anger. Then without warning he stepped right up to Marine, wrapped his arms around her slim waist and hoisted her over his shoulder. Marine cried and began to kick and shout as she struggled to get free.

"Let me go Sparrow! Put me down!"

"I will as soon as we get on board the Pearl. Gibbs, drop me a rope quickly!"

"God damn it Sparrow I told you to let me go this instant or I'm going to bloody kill you!"

"Try all you want ye bloody wench but I'm still not letting you go." Jack was glad to see a rope swinging from the deck. He grabbed it and after testing its endurance began to pull himself up with Marine hanging over his shoulder. Marine screamed and wriggled under Jack's hold as much as she could but Jack was stronger than she was, with or without her normal strength. After heaving a sigh, she stopped and watched the surface of the water move farther and farther away as they continued to go up the hull. When her eyes settled on Jack's back, worry and concern that she didn't want to have flowed through her conscience. A dark stain began to grow larger on Jack's waistcoat and she knew that if he removed that, his white shirt would look even worse.

"Jack! Put me down and I'll promise not to run away. I'll go up the ship together with you." She shouted. Jack had heard her, but he made no move to do so. "Please Jack. All this movement and strain has opened your wound again and now its getting worse. Don't be a bloody fool."

"I'd be an even bigger fool if I let you go. I'm not that daft lass." He replied. Marine gritted her teeth and was tempted to smash her fist on the wound herself.

"Don't be so full of yourself you arrogant prick! I'm not saying this just so I can run away. If I wanted to run away I would have done it long before. Put me down now!" Thunder boomed loudly and lightning flashed close to them. Gibbs who was standing under Jack and Marine saw a very large wave come their way and widened his eyes.

"Brace yourself Jack! There's going to be a strong wave coming your way." He shouted to him. Jack stopped climbing to look up at Gibbs then over his shoulder at the blue wave that was growing larger and larger as it neared them. He cursed and grumbled as he hung there; already he could feel pain surging through the right side of his body because of the wound. Marine felt Jack drop her from his shoulder and wrap one arm around her waist tightly. Instinctively and without realizing it, she wrapped her arms around his neck and moved her body closer to his. The wave crashed onto them and the hull of the ship, sending it rocking roughly from side to side. Gibbs and the rest of the crew had held on to things on the Pearl as the wave came and, once it was over, stood up to get back to work.

Elizabeth was inside a cabin together with a sleeping Carrie this whole time, and at the sound of the storm outside began to grow worried for Marine. She tucked the blanket around Carrie and after making sure that she wasn't going to be disturbed, walked out of the room and was greeted by heavy rain and cold gusts of wind that was coming from above her through the stairs. She wrapped her arms around herself to keep from shivering from the cold and began to make her way up. Her eyes roamed the main deck in search of Jack when she took the last step but she frowned when she couldn't find him anywhere. It wasn't like Jack to be inside his cabin during a storm as big as this. She was about to walk to find him or anyone else she recognized when the ship began to sway violently. She wobbled slightly and steadied herself by placing her hands against the walls.

Once the worst of it was over, she caught sight of Gibbs leaning over the railing and looking around frantically. She rushed to his side quickly and leaned over herself to look for a boat and the form of Marine. The sight of wooden planks floating on the water made her pale in fear. She looked at the older man who wasn't looking well himself.

"Gibbs, what's happened to Marine? Where on earth is Jack? One moment I could still see them and the next they're gone!" Gibbs looked at her with a grim face and gave one answer for both questions.

"I don't know lass...I don't know."

* * *

"What's the damange on my ship Mark?" AnaMaria asked as she watched Jones and Cornelius clean up the mess on the deck together with the rest of her crew. The taller, equally dark skinned man with his calm emotionless gaze grunted as he stood beside the captain with his muscular arms crossed. 

"We lost some of our cannons to the sea. Our gunpowder stock has also been emtpied dry during the fight. Starboard's been practically torn off and could barely handle the weight of three men; we've taken the remaining cannons aside so it wouldn't collapse. But from what I can make of it, we can still sail to the nearest port without encountering any serious problems as long as we're careful." The first mate explained. "We can fix 'er up there and restock and the like."

"That's a relief..." AnaMaria spoke with a soft sigh. "And how's the crew?" Mark turned his head towards the sight of numerous people on the main deck before he looked at AnaMaria with a small frown.

"There are a few who died...many are injured and need a professional doctor's expertise. But it's miracle enough that we made it out of that with so many people still alive." The dark skinned woman nodded in agreement.

"Aye...if it wasn't for Will's idea, more would have fallen victim to that creature..." She said with a small shudder. If Will had not fired the cannon at that moment when everyone was screaming and shouting, worse things would have definitely occurred.

The cannon had been loaded with the anchor by Will's order. And when Will shot at the snake, it flew with speed and force from the blow and wrapped itself with its chains around the snake's neck. It circled the creature twice before following the laws of gravity and falling to the ground. The weight of it startled the creature and sent it falling back into the water just as it was about to fall onto the deck. Once it gave a very large splash, AnaMaria began to order the crew to turn around the ship and sail away as quickly as they could. They've been sailing away without any signs of the sea snake ever since. At remembering the young blacksmith, she turned her worries to him. "How is he doing?"

"They said he had a few broken ribs but aside from that he's got nothing serious. He's resting at the crew's cabin together with those who aren't dead yet."

"And Jones?"

"That red-head who was punching the snake like a madman? After recovering from the shock earlier," AnaMaria grimaced when she remembered where Jones had been during that last moment. If Will's idea hadn't worked, he would have been the first one to go. "He's helping the ship's doctor tend to the injured."

"All right. Cornelius," At the sound of his name the old man looked up. He turned his gaze to AnaMaria and began to make his way towards her. "We're going to dock on the nearest port to restock our items and tend to the injured before continuing on our true heading. Is that all right?" Cornelius smiled and nodded.

"Of course. This is your ship after all. And I don't think we can go any farther in this state even if everyone wanted to." Then after a moment's thought he added, "What about Carrie's clone? What's happened to her?" AnaMaria turned her gaze to her first mate.

"Mark, go down the brig and see if the prisoner's doing all right." She said. The large man nodded before walking towards the stairs leading down below deck. Cornelius watched him as well and once he was out of earshot looked at AnaMaria in question.

"Is he the man you were talking about earlier? The one who would be in charge of the clone?"

"Aye, that he is. He's my most trusted man on this ship; he keeps mostly to himself and he has enough sense to stay alert when around traitors and the like. If I give him an order he'll follow it through and through." AnaMaria said with pride. "He's the perfect man for the job."

"That's good to hear." Cornelius said with a smile. "I guess that covers all of our problems for now."

"Captain! Captain!" Both the old man and the dark skinned woman turned their heads to the first mate who was running up the steps and towards them as quickly as he could. His face was worried with his lips turned into a frown. "The prisoner isn't in the brig! She's gone!"

"WHAT?!" AnaMaria stepped away from the helm and ran to follow Mark back into the brig while Cornelius went right behind the dark skinned woman. They went through the narrow corridor of the ship and stopped when they reached the brig. As Cornelius looked around the empty cells he widened his eyes in disbelief.

"How in the world did she escape?"

"She must have done it while we were attacking the snake..." Mark suggested as he went towards the only cell with its doors wide open. He inspected it and saw a silver key hanging inserted into the lock. "Could be that this key fell from its place on the wall and made it to her while the ship was rocking back and forth."

"Damn it!" AnaMaria cursed as she walked away from the brig. "That snake was probably distracting us just so the prisoner could escape. She must be far away from us now; being carried by the snake and being led to Marine's clone or the like. This is not turning out well for us."

"We can't do much about it now. Even if we try to chase after her we'd only risk our lives more, epsecially with the state of the ship as it is. Let's go on with our plan as discussed and worry about them later." Cornelius said as he went after AnaMaria and placed a consoling hand on her shoulder. The dark skinned woman stopped when she felt the physical contact and gave a heavy sigh.

"All that trouble for nothing..."

"Well look on the bright side, we fought against a monstrous sea snake and will live to tell about it." The old man said with a small encouraging smile. AnaMaria looked at him with a frown on her face.

"You call that a bright side? I don't care if we killed that creature and became famous for it! We won't get anything from it except injuries, deaths and more trouble for me as the captain of this ship." She argued. Cornelius couldn't help but give a small chuckle.

"True...but that has and will always be the price for being the Captain. Especially if you are one of the better, more friendlier ones." This didn't make AnaMaria feel better. Instead it made her feel irritated at the man. She willed herself not to lose her temper on the old man and turned around to resume walking.


	24. A Charming Illusion

**AN: **Hi there! Fortunately I've gotten less work in school compared to last month. And so here is the next chapter. I hope you enjoy and don't forget to read and review!

* * *

_**"Bloody hallucinations..." - Jack Sparrow**_

**Chapter 24 - A Charming Illusion**

The sound of the waves crashing onto shore, the warm rays of the bright sun and the feel of hot sand on the back brought Marine back to the living world. She half-opened her eyes and winced in pain as she felt her head throbbing hard and swimming around in circles. The sunlight streaming down from the sky straight at her only made it worse. Once her eyes adjusted to the brightness, she sat up and looked around. She was lying on a white sandy shore while behind her was a large forest that reached from one end of her sight of the island to the other. Their leaves rustled against a cool soft breeze from the sea that brushed against them. Surrounding her were planks of broken wood. And that was when she recalled what had happened before she lost consciousness.

She remembered that as the strong wave crashed them against the Black Pearl, both she and Jack sensed the small boat breaking apart from the impact and the force. Together they sunk deep into the water and began to roll around as waves continued to toss them about like a salad. Jack tried to hold on to her as all this was happening but both the waves, his weakening strength, and the lack of air caused him to loosen his hold. And that was how they got separated.

Marine struggled to keep her breath in as she fought against the waves. Despite the situation she had fallen into, she felt no panic or distress; she was tired of being so emotional for too long. Her whole body moved in a more instinctive manner rather than a conscious one. It was through this unconscious thought that she began to curl up as best she could and waited for the worst of the tumblings to pass. Once they did, she allowed herself to float a bit in order to see where she was before heading towards the surface. If it weren't for the wooden planks that she held onto as she reached the top, she would have already drowned to death. Fortunately, she had gotten a big piece and stayed afloat as the waves continued thrashing about.

There was no sign of the Black Pearl nor of Jack as she slowly floated further and further away from where she guessed the ship's location was; it was hard to tell with the waves sending all of them in all directions and the heavy sheet of rain obscuring everything at sea that was on sight. She couldn't even guess where she was or in what direction she was headed to. Screaming for someone to help her was of no use in this state. All she could do was cling onto the piece of wood she had and hope for the best.

Her hand unconsciously played with the hot sand on the ground as she tried to recollect herself; scooping some up then letting it slide down from her hands. The feel of small pieces of the sand getting stuck on her fingers soothed her a little bit and kept her head calm for some reason. Now that she remembered how she got there, she had to find a way to get out. Once more, she began to look around the island. There was absolutely nothing she could find that was going to be useful for her. The wooden planks scattered about weren't enough to make her a small raft; enough to make a small fire probably, but not for a long time. Then all of a sudden, she shook her head and lightly slapped both sides of her cheeks with her hands. Her eyes stung a bit as some of the sand went to her eye, but this was more helpful than annoying.

_Why am I assuming that I'm stranded on a deserted island? First thing's first; I have to see and figure out where I am._

Thinking of her next action and actually doing it were two entirely different things. Marine's head might have been made up but she made no move to do what she had decided to do. The sound of the peaceful waves and the aura of relaxation tempted her to sit there and do nothing at all. Currently, she didn't care if there were people in the island she was on or not. It wasn't as if she was in any sort of danger now that she was away from Jack Sparrow. Anything else would be better than facing him.

And that's what ruined her peaceful, languid moment.

She gave a small, soft sigh as she pulled up her knees against her chest and wrapped her arms around her legs. Her gaze stayed glued upon the blue sea glittering against the sun's reflection and beyond the horizon. Even without Jack Sparrow in physical form he was still distracting her and annoying her to no end. She should be happy that she was away from that scoundrel and all his twisted, deceiving ways. Without him she didn't need to worry about whether someone's watching her and waiting for a chance to stab her on the back. And without Carrie, she didn't have to keep watching her back and making sure that she wouldn't get herself into any serious danger all the time. She might even have a better chance at surviving and coming out victorious alone than with the others.

"But maybe...just maybe..." As the gears in her brain began to turn faster and faster, she stood up from the ground and agitatedly looked around. Was it possible that everything that had happened to her after she arrived at Port Royal for the second time had been just a dream and that it was only then that the real adventure was starting? Was it truly possible that it never happened to her in real life? There was a nagging part of her deep within her mind that kept bugging her somehow. But as she thought more and more of the idea, her excitement grew and the nagging thought disappeared.

"Carrie's probably still back in my own world. And even though she's missing I'm sure that she's still alive and most likely worrying about me or hiding somewhere for some reason." She muttered to herself. "That's right. Will and Elizabeth might still be preparing their wedding or something like that. Norrington's probably still the Commodore at Port Royal, looking for Jack and myself. Jones and Cornelius either don't exist or haven't met up with me yet. And Jack...he's still a lying, cheating pirate, but he hasn't betrayed me yet!" She grinned brightly as she nodded to herself. "Everything's still the same as when I left it the first time. And now I have to find them so I can see their surprised faces when they see me back in their world."

The planks of wood that lay beside her could have been something else. It doesn't necessarily have to be the boat she had gotten from the Pearl when she supposedly walked away and left the ship. And it was possible that for some strange reason the supernatural forces of nature had placed her on some strange island to meet up with Jack again. The things that have happened to her could be just dreams or simply warnings to her about what was to come. If that was so, maybe she could still have the chance to change everything that had happened in her dream. Things might go better this time.

Filled up with new vigor and energy, Marine turned around and made her way into the large forest. She held up her hands and pushed away leaves, branches and vines hanging from above her that were blocking her way. She looked from left to right, searching for any sign of human life or any living animal that she could catch and eat. As she did, her thoughts wandered on the whole Pirates of the Caribbean characters. Do they still remember her? How long had it been for them since they last saw her? She was looking forward to being back on the Black Pearl and seeing everyone's friendly faces again. Not to mention Jack Sparrow's own big, silly and goofy grin and his funny-looking sway as he walked all over the ship.

"This is just like being stranded with Jack before, only now it's only me and I'm a lot smarter than that rum-loving pirate!" She told herself. It was no problem to her. She was sure that there would be a ship passing by or at least a ship that would notice the fire that she would build up during the night in no time at all. If she was lucky, it would even be the Pearl itself. And if there was no wood left from the ones on the shore, she can just go into the forest to get more. She could also handle a few days without food. It was just simple survival skills. And that was without considering the supposition that she was on an island where friendly people lived peacefully.

"Everything's going to be all right." Marine said with a larger smile on her face. "Everything IS all right."

* * *

Jack Sparrow stared at what was before him with his mouth gaping wide and his eyes bulging in surprise and disbelief. Right before him was Marine, sitting on a chair with her boots perched on a table and revealing smooth, pale legs. Her sultry smile and the bottle of rum she held in her hand was like bait for a fish. His hungry eyes roamed her from the toes of her boots to the top of her black, seemingly silky and shiny hair. And the very slim nightgown she wore made his blood run hot and pumping wildly through his veins. He never even considered thinking of how she came to wear those when he last saw her fully clothed or where she got the bottle of rum in her hand.

"Come here Jack." Marine called as her finger on her free hand curled inward, beckoning to him to come closer. Jack felt his throat turn dry and swallowed before speaking up.

"Um...Marine love, do you think we should be doing this here right now? Not that I don't want us to of course. But we have to find the Pearl first and..." Marine pursed her lips into a pouty frown that Jack thought was even sexier than her seductive glance.

"What? You want to waste your energy going about the island and looking for the ship when you could be spending your time with me?" She asked. "You disappoint me Jack. And I was so excited about being wholly, passionately ravished by the most handsome, the most charming man in the whole world." Jack's ears pricked and he couldn't help but grin, showing off a golden tooth.

"Ravish you say? Well if you're willing-"

"Oh I'm more than willing Captain." Marine said as she stood up and walked closer towards him. She stopped just close enough so that their faces were inches apart but their bodies in no physical contact. Her lips moved closer to his ear and the feel of her breath sent chills down Jack's spine "I'm ecstatic." She whispered seductively. Jack placed his hands on her waist and pulled her closer to him. He was about to lean towards her when she placed her hand to his lips, stopping him from going further.

"But before that, I'd like to ask you a question." She raised the bottle of rum in front of him and had a wicked smile on her face. "Would you like me to pour this bottle all over my body?" A mischievous, cheerful glint came to Jack's eyes as he returned a smile that would equal her own.

"That's very interesting love. Very interesting indeed." Marine gave a soft chuckle as she placed a hand to Jack's chest and pushed him back. Jack had half-expected to fall onto a large and soft king-sized bed as he tilted back. But the hard impact he felt sent pain through his nerves and his brain, slowly taking him away from his dreamy, lust-filled mind. He gasped and growled as the stinging pain on his back ran through his body like a fast current. It especially throbbed at a certain spot on his right side though he couldn't think of why it was so. But all of a sudden the pain intensified and he gave a half-scream of pain as he closed his eyes and curled his hands into fists.

When he opened his eyes he saw that Marine was gone. He forced himself to sit up, struggling with the pain as much as he could, and saw that the chair and the table were gone as well. His mind came to the conclusion that he either dreamed of it or hallucinated about it and couldn't help but groan in disappointment.

"Just when things were beginning to turn out for the good." He grumbled to himself. He winced and hissed as he felt another wave of pain run through his body. When he looked over his shoulder he saw that the ground was slightly stained with blood. A few minutes more of staring made him realize that it was his own blood. He finally remembered everything that had happened before he fell unconscious and widened his eyes when one name came automatically to mind.

"Marine!" He cried. The last he remembered was losing his hold on her and being separated from her as the storm raged on. After that it was all hazy to him. Was she all right? Did she happen to land on the same island he did? Jack grunted and felt his muscles tense up as he forced himself to stand up. He swayed slightly as his vision swirled before him before steadying himself on his legs. They felt wobbly and weak, but he managed to keep himself upright without any support. Then with a mighty struggle he took one step forward and slowly began to walk. He entered the forest of the island and slowly but carefully went through it while looking about for any sign of Marine or anyone else. He didn't dare shout or call Marine in fear of setting any dangerous animals or other creatures at him.

Fear, worry and more pain kept running through Jack's busy mind and every step he took was painful to him. He wished with all his might that Marine would somehow pop out in front of him and have the heart to help him even after everything they've been through. God knows he'd do anything to get back their old relationship, even though it wasn't the one he truly wanted; being friends instead of lovers was better than being enemies with each other. But as he went on, he knew that he couldn't keep up with his pace any longer. Anytime now he would collapse and either find his death or be miraculously saved by someone or something. The first thought frightened him more than he would ever let on to anyone else.

"Where are you Marine?" He muttered to himself. "I won't last a minute longer at this rate." And as if by some higher-being's divine intervention, he caught sight of two moving objects not far from him. The leaves and the vines from opposite sides moved towards a certain direction, meeting upon a clearing that was nearby. Jack stopped by the trunk of a tree and waited patiently for the two other forms to come out from the bushes and the branches. He would have a clear view of them and determine his next plan after seeing who or what it was that would appear.

The first one to come out brought joy and relief to his face. He was about to step out from his hiding place and call Marine's attention when the second form appeared and kept him frozen to his spot in a stunned surprise. He saw that Marine had seen the other one as well and saw her smile brightly and run towards the newcomer. The other Jack who had come out had a smile on his face as he held out his arms to her. This strike the real Jack as odd and dangerous since the last time they had seen each other, they were arguing very heatedly and they were ready to bite each other's heads off if it came to that. He half-expected to see Marine take out a pistol or a sword and kill the impostor still with that smile on her face. But nothing like that happened; instead Marine crashed onto the other Jack and was accepted in a heart-warming embrace that made Jack twitch in slight irritation.

"Jack! You really are here! I can't believe it!" Marine cried as she moved back from the other man. Jack grinned at her in return.

"Of course love. Somehow while I was sailing the seas with my new Black Pearl I sensed that you would be here on this island. You knew about my escape from the hangman's noose and the return of my Black Pearl didn't you?" He asked. Marine laughed and grinned as well.

"Maybe, maybe not." She said in a teasing smile. "How long have I been gone from your world?"

"Quite some time now. A few months at the most. The whelp and his bony lass are married now. I myself held the ceremony on my Black Pearl. And they'll probably have little tiny whelps running about their house the next time we come back to visit them."

"You?! That's a shocker." She chuckled when she saw the other Jack frown. "Anyway, what are you doing now? Are you on some kind of adventure or something? Chasing other mystical creatures or hunting after sacred, priceless treasures maybe?" Jack listened to their conversation and realized that it was set before the issue with the clone began. It was as if he and Marine were just meeting once more after their first adventure was finished. He began to wonder if it was just another illusion or dream or if it was real this time and the other Jack was just trying to delude Marine the way a fake deluded him. He wished it was the first one, because it pained him to see Marine so happy and so carefree at something that wasn't real. It had been very long since he saw her smile or laugh sincerely like she had no problems in the world at all.

If it was the first, then was the hallucination some figment of his imagination? Was it something that he desired or something he wished could have happened instead? Well Jack was regretful of the events that had passed now that he knew the outcome of his actions. And by going back through time he could change his decisions concerning Marine's clone and tell the real Marine about it instead of keeping it to himself. That way their fight would have never happened and their trust with each other would probably still be in tact. It meant they wouldn't be stranded here on this island and instead be on the Black Pearl, setting their course towards wherever it is they were supposed to go to. Jack gave a remorseful sigh as he thought of how much their relationship had progressed from their first encounter on AnaMaria's Jolly Mon and how sad it was that his foolishness broke it apart.

"Marine..." He muttered as he watched the two continue to talk and laugh with each other. His sight suddenly blurred and began to double and his headache came back ten times stronger while his quick and ragged breathing became even faster and more hoarse. He's lost so much blood that it was frightening. If he hadn't placed his hands on the trunk of the tree for support, he would have fallen to the ground and have no strength to get back on his feet. This time he knew that he was at his utmost limit. He didn't care if it was just an illusion or not anymore. All he cared about was letting out what he wanted to say before he lost consciousness.

"Marine! Quit being a bloody fool and wake up from this stupid dream of yours! You know deep inside that everything that's happened is real and that you're just being deluded by this impostor because you're afraid of facing the truth. The real Marine I know and highly respect is not a coward! Come on ye bloody wench, get out of that illusion and save me before I bleed to death!" His face paled as he saw Marine continue her discussion with the other Jack without any sign of hearing him or sensing his presence.

"Bloody hallucinations..." He grumbled as his hands slipped from the trunk and he saw the ground getting closer and closer to him before all went black.

* * *

Marine turned her head around as she furrowed her brows in both confusion and concentration. For a moment there she had sensed something different; some deep feeling within her that struggled to nag her to death. It sounded as if someone was calling her with an urgent sense of need. There was a sense of familiarity to the feeling she had but she couldn't figure out exactly what it was that was bugging her. And even though she tried to ignore it by occupying herself with other things, the strange feeling kept creeping back up. There was something wrong perhaps, or maybe there was something that she was supposed to do and had forgotten. She turned away from the man she was speaking to and looked about the forest slowly. 

"Is there something wrong Maria?" Jack asked in concern. Marine turned her gaze back at the pirate and gave him a small smile.

"It's nothing serious. Just a weird nagging feeling that somehow keeps coming to me. I think I'm supposed to do something or be somewhere right now...I can't understand it." She said as she scratched the side of her head. Jack placed his hands on her shoulders and gave them a comforting squeeze.

"I'm sure it's nothing. Otherwise you would remember it or be in dangerous peril now. Now there's no time to be standing here and chatting. We have to get back to the Pearl and set our course to Tortuga. I have some urgent business to attend to there." He said. "You are coming with me are you not?" He added with a serious frown. Marine's heart fluttered slightly at the intense look Jack was giving her. It was as if he wanted her to go with him.

_Why would he want me to go that badly?_

_Are you crazy?_ Another part of her cried incredulously. _It's obvious that he somehow has some fancy for you! If he didn't then he wouldn't be that determined to get you to go with him to his adventure._

_He can't like me in that way. He's a womanizer! He has women on every pirate-friendly port! Once he has his way with me he'll just leave me and find some new fresh girl to go out with._

_Then the only way to find out what he's thinking is if you go to the Black Pearl with him! Either way it's better than being stuck here for the rest of your life._

_That's a good point. I'm Sharpshooter Marine. I can handle myself in any situation that comes at me. I'll be all right and everything will turn out right in the end._

"Love?" Jack asked when Marine didn't answer immediately. The female pirate shook her head off any other thoughts lingering in her mind and smiled at Jack. She was about to open her mouth and give an answer to his invitation when all of a sudden another suddenly stronger and darker thought pierced her head like an arrow.

_Quit deluding yourself darling._

She stopped, and for some strange reason tried to look at herself and feel the things she was wearing. It wasn't the ones she had worn on her first adventure. She furrowed her brows in confusion. Since when had she worn the clothes she was wearing now? She had never seen them before until now.

_No. I've seen these before...I made them myself._

And where were the three ear clippings she had on her left ear? Didn't she have them in the first adventure before?

_They were there before...but someone else has them now._

Who? Who has her ear clippings? She didn't remember giving them to anyone at all. It was as if they had suddenly disappeared.

_Disappeared when I came back._

Came back? This wasn't the first time she had come back to the world of Pirates of the Caribbean? Had she gone back here before this? Her head began to throb with pain and she placed one hand to her forehead with a small frown on her face. Her mind had become fuzzy all of a sudden and she struggled hard to remember things that don't seem to want to be remembered. Jack titled his head so that he would see her eye to eye and looked at her concernedly.

"Are you all right love?"

"What did you call me?" She asked him. Jack was startled as he stepped back from her.

"Love. I called you love."

"No. Before that. You called me by a name..."

"No I didn't. You must have hit your head on something love. I never call you anything else but love remember? I do it to annoy you."

"No. You don't use that nickname on me to annoy me anymore. You used another name to annoy me even more. Maria." She widened her eyes as she looked at him apprehensively. "You're not supposed to know that name." Jack widened his own eyes at this realization and held up his hands in defense.

"I...I heard it. I can't remember where but I'm sure I found out that the name Maria was connected to you." Marine narrowed her eyes as her impatience grew. The pounding on her head got worse and worse the more she asked and received unspoken answers.

"No one but my father and his crew knows my real name. And all of them died together with my father. Everyone except...Cornelius." For some reason tears began to fall down her eyes as she held onto her head with both hands. "Yes. Cornelius is still alive. I remember seeing him again. I remember him telling me a story about my parents and what happened to them with their clones. You were there. And so was Elizabeth, Will, Norrington and two others...Jones Westley and...and Carrie!" Marine widened her eyes in realization. A resounding click came to her mind and all of a sudden all of the memories that had been blurry to her before were so clear and steady now.

"I remember everything now! How the hell did I forget them? How could I have forgotten them?" She shouted as she closed her eyes and let more tears spill down. "Damn it I'm not supposed to be happy! I'm supposed to be feeling pissed and depressed at how bad my life's becoming because of my bloody clone!" She glared at Jack, who now seemed so fake and out of this world. "And you! You're not supposed to like me or be worried about me or be civil with me! You're supposed to be as angry and pissed off as I am now!" And in the blink of an eye the Jack in front of her disappeared. She stood there for a long time, letting everything that's happened to her sink in one more time. Without knowing it, her knees gave way and she fell to the ground on her hands and knees. She pressed her forehead to the ground as it slowly became muddy with her tears.

The skies began to darken and Marine could begin to smell the scent of a storm coming their way. But she didn't care anymore. Nothing in her life mattered anymore, not now when everything had fallen apart. What was the point of living when no one cared or when everyone was against her? What was the point when she was going to die sooner or later? Jack hated her, Carrie hated her; heck everyone probably hated her now because of what she's been doing. No one was going to bother looking for her or be worried about her disappearance. The only one who was going to be concerned was her clone; but for a reason entirely selfish and personal. She closed her eyes and began to sob again. The wind was getting stronger and were brushing her hair all over her head. Then all of a sudden, she heard laughter.

She blinked the tears away as she looked around in confusion and alarm. The familiar sound of cheerful gale was haunting. She then found herself and Jack Sparrow standing across each other. The pirate was drenched in rum and glaring at Marine in irritation while the female pirate was laughing loud and hard. Then that scene switched to another one with Norrington and his guards surrounding her and an unconscious Jack Sparrow.

_"Sharpshooter Marine...the pirate's name has become known over the past few years. They say he was a wandering pirate who had no crew to become loyal to and continuously moved from one ship to another. I also heard that he has been part of thousands of attacks on merchant ships in just one month. What he was most famous for was his precise accuracy and precision, thus earning the nickname Sharpshooter. But I never expected him to be in fact, a she."_

_"Expect nothing less Commodore. Even though I am a lass, those stories you heard were no exaggeration. I am known for my sharpshooting skills. I have gone through many ships, captains and crewmembers. And I have looted enough treasure to last me a lifetime."_

When was the last time she's heard someone refer her to her famous pirate title? It's been so long...The next scene was of her and Will on the Interceptor.

_"Yes, I never thought I'd help two pirates escape and steal a ship together with them. It's all just moving too fast..."_

_"Don't fret Will. You're doing it for a very just reason. I'm confident that you'll be pardoned for all the things you've done so far. Trust me."_

If only things would turn out that way for her now...if only what she was doing was right...she might be pardoned. And things might still turn out good in the end. Trust...would she ever find anyone to trust after all this? The scene with her and Will disappeared, followed by another of them this time sitting at the crow's nest.

_"You're very different from all the other pirates I've met and heard about. Are you sure you're a pirate?"_

_"Are ye blind lad?! I'm Sharpshooter Marine! One of the most feared pirates in the whole of the Spanish Main. How the hell am I different from the other pirates?"_

_"I didn't mean to insult you. It's just that you've been the friendliest person in this ship. Even the crew seems to take a liking to you now. I didn't think pirates would be so trustful and casual when working with all sorts of people."_

_"__Aye, I guess you're right about that. Only a few pirates would be so kind and open to others. I just love making new friends and keeping them. I most likely got that from my father. He was even friendlier than I am."_ The next scene was of her and Jack, at his cabin.

_"Sparrow...Captain...I'm truly sorry about what I said earlier. I know I really offended you back then and I don't understand why you risked your own life just to save mine. If you were any normal pirate you would have left me there to die."_

_"You're not dealing with any normal pirate love. You're dealing with Captain Jack Sparrow."_

At hearing their reconciliation back then, Marine couldn't help but shed tears all over again. It hurt her to hear that again, now that things between them weren't as good as before. Especially when he had saved her life a second time. Then she heard Elizabeth's and Jack's own voices over her cries.

_"I don't think people are pathetic because they cry. And you have every right to cry and feel sad about what happened. Whoever says you're stupid is blind and even dumber. I don't know you that well but I sense that you're someone I can trust Miss Marine. I can feel that you have a good heart in you."_

_"You don't need to hold it in. Let your emotions go. You'll feel better afterwards."_ She thought of how ironic that was, since she's been doing nothing but releasing her emotions all over the place. As if in reply to that, Jack Sparrow's voice went on.

_"Don't deny it love. I can see the pain in your eyes even if you smile at everyone and say there's nothing wrong with you. You don't show your pains and your sadness to anyone and try to make yourself look strong and tough by smiling and waltzing about proudly. You don't want anyone to see your weaknesses; afraid of being ridiculed or worse, used to others' advantages."_

She had lost that sense of trying to be strong. All she ever did now was mope, cry and feel sorry for herself. And that was why she was weak and being used. At that thought she widened her eyes and felt her muscles tense up.

"What's happened to me? Since when did I fall for stupid traps and useless, impossible dreams like those? And since when do I want to be angry and pissed off at anyone? Ever since I've been on this second adventure I've been doing nothing but being a bloody ass to everyone. I can't believe that I had been so foolish and so selfish to everyone, even though they were doing everything in their power to help me out. Pathetic..." She pressed a hand to her face and dug her nails on the surface of her skin. As she did, her tears continued to flow down freely from her face. "Carrie's right. I am running away from my problems. I'm a coward. Damn it I'm such a stupid fool!" Lightning flashed and thunder boomed, as if confirming her fears about herself.

"Marine..." At first she didn't take much notice in that, thinking that it was another one of her scenes in the past being played out. But when no one replied or nothing else happened, it came back; this time seeming much more louder and clearer than the rest of the voices she's been hearing. The female pirate's head immediately shot up at the sound of the familiar voice. She looked frantically around, trying to find out where the source of it was coming from. Hearing her name being called for a third time, Marine turned her head to the side towards the edge of the clearing and widened her eyes in shock and in fear. Without thinking she clambered to her feet and ran towards the fallen body on the ground.

"Jack!" She fell beside him and looked at his body. His back, which was facing her, was bloody and battered; the wound on his right side had opened up again and had made him lose quite a lot of blood from the looks of it. Next, she turned him over so she could see his face. His eyes were closed and he was barely breathing. His forehead was burning up as she placed a hand to it and sweat dripped down from all over his body. She could hear him mutter words, phrases and sentences as if he was in some mad dream. She was about to help him up when she stopped herself and looked at the body with slight suspicion.

_Is this another one of those stupid illusions trying to distract me from getting out of this island?_

There was no telling if the Jack before her was real or not. As she touched his arms and his body, she felt tingling sensations run through her body like currents. He was becoming hot with fever, but the feel of his skin was still fresh in her mind. It felt so familiar and so wonderful to her. Even with this thought in her head, she still hesitated. Then after a while she shook her head. There was no sense trying to find out if the Jack before her was the right one. He needed her right then, else he might die from the infection on his wound. This time it was her turn to save his life and she wasn't planning on letting him down now. The first thing that came to her mind was to find a small lake or pond to wash off the bloody and fix up his injury. But before that, she held his shoulders and shook him gently from side to side. The clouds were beginning to turn a dark shade of gray as they hovered above the island. Marine felt the first splatter of rain on her face but ignored it.

"Jack? Jack wake up please. You were the one who was calling me before while I was under that hallucination weren't you? You were that annoying bugger that kept nagging me about something. You tried to get me out of that hallucination...even though you were badly injured." Her mind had already known it when she snapped back to reality. She probably felt it all this time and just couldn't or didn't want to accept it. She held his hand and squeezed it as hard as she could. "Don't die on me now Jack. You have to live so I can kick your ass and deal with you the way I should have done long before. Come on Jack! We have to get back to the others. I have to end this fight once and for all so no one else would suffer." When the pirate still wouldn't stand up, Marine wrapped her arm around his waist, placed his arm around her shoulder and hoisted him from the ground. He might have looked skinny and scrawny, but beneath the cloth were firm and taut muscles that have developed throughout the years of his pirate life. It was difficult to keep both herself and Jack upright as she began to walk back into the forest.

_Just hang on there Jack...I'm not going to let you die now._


	25. Too Late

**AN: **Sorry for not updating as quickly. I've been so busy with reports, projects, exams and the like that I never get the time to write. Unfortunately I'm still quite busy so the pace won't really change much. Well anyways, here's the next chapter! Read and Review but most of all, enjoy!

* * *

_**"It's too late to have regrets now...you've made your decision and because of it you're going to fall into your impending doom." - Marine's clone**_

**Chapter 25 - Too Late**

Jack groaned and opened his eyes to face a very dark sky. It seemed different from the other skies he'd seen. He furrowed his brows as he noted a few lumps or things sticking out. A few seconds later he realized that they were rocks that had been formed into the shape they presently had because of erosion.

"Why does the sky have strange rocks sticking out of it?" He murmured to himself.

"Because that isn't the sky you're looking at you big dummy." A soft voice replied. Jack tried to turn his head at the sound of the voice but found out that he was too tired to do so; he felt drained of energy and rest. He gave up trying and went back to staring up. The other person with him must have sensed this because a few moments later he found himself face to face with a pretty but languid and pale face.

"Marine?" He coughed before he could go on with what he was saying and wanted nothing more than to tear his throat out. It itched terribly and felt hoarse from being out of use. He wondered how long he had been out from the real world; how long the female pirate had taken care of him like this. She looked dirty, stressed out and exhausted as she placed a cold hand to his forehead.

"Your fever has gone down. And aside from your ridiculous delirium about the sky you're getting better. Guess nothing would cure you of your daftness." She said, moving back from Jack yet still looking down at him. "Do you have any idea how much trouble you've given me now? Instead of finding a way to get out of this bloody island I had to keep an eye on you day and night and bring you out from your misery." Jack wanted to smirk at her and give back a witty comeback but took one look at her eyes and stopped himself.

"How long have you been taking care of me?" He asked. When Marine didn't answer, he grabbed her arm and tightened his hold. "How long?" He repeated.

"Two days? I can't really remember. But what's important is you've been stubbornly fighting not to die. Even your body was working with you to keep you alive and survive through the worst part of your infection. It made you recover quicker."

"Impressive. You could use that kind of tone and the kind of expression on other people perhaps, but your bloodshot eyes and ridiculously shaggy appearance are telling me something else." He told her. "I know for a fact that when you're stranded, one of the things you remember most is the number of days or weeks you've been on the island. _How long_?" At first Marine didn't answer him. It was only when she stared at his intense khol-smudged eyes did she crack.

"A week and two days." Jack stared at her for a long time before turning his head away.

"Ah...still no sign of the Black Pearl or any other ship for that matter?"

"Don't know...I didn't have the chance to take a look, and the only sign they'll have of our inhabiting this island is the smoke from the fire I make every night." Marine said as she turned her gaze from him to tend to something he couldn't see. When she came back to his line of vision, he saw that she held some fruits and smoked fish on sticks.

"Here. You're probably starving. It'll help you recover even quicker." She said, holding it out to him. Jack wasn't paying any attention to what she was holding. He was more focused on the hands that carried the food. He groaned as he forced himself to sit up from the ground; it took him a while to manage it on his own. His arms shook as he used what strength he still had to bring himself up and felt his lungs bursting from exhaustion. When he finally settled on a comfortable sitting position, he looked at the female pirate. Marine didn't move to assist him. Instead she just sat there, carrying the food she had collected and waiting for him to get it. Jack took the fruits and the smoked fish, set them aside, then grabbed Marine's arm and pulled it closer to him. He inspected it in silence, tracing the cuts and bruises she had all over her arm with his finger. From what he could tell, Marine had gotten them very recently; a couple of days ago or so. He gritted his teeth as he avoided her gaze and tightened his hold on her arm.

"Why? Why are you going through all this needless trouble, even injuring yourself in the process, just to take care of me? You just said a while ago how much trouble I gave you and how much better it would have been for you if you hadn't taken care of me. You hate me and you don't trust me anymore; you said that you would never trust me for as long as you lived. But now I find you here sitting beside me, bringing me food at the cost of those injuries - though they're minor - on your hands . Tell me why you did it Marine. Say it!" He shouted angrily. "I didn't ask for your help. I didn't want it and I didn't need it. So why?"

"Consider it payment for trying to save me on our first day here on this island." She replied still in that same cold tone. "Even though I hated you, I would never let you go down like that without my repaying you back. It's a matter of pride to me, you see." Jack furrowed his brows and had a look of intense concentration on his face that Marine wondered if he was really feeling better or was just faking it.

"What the hell are you doing?" She asked him.

"I'm considering it." Jack replied casually. "And I don't buy it. I know you and how your mind works, if you have a mind, and it doesn't work that way."

"And just how much do you know of me?" Marine snapped angrily. "Really Jack, can you truly say that you know so much about me when we've only met each other and spent a few months with each other?" Jack wasn't fazed by her anger and answered back with an expressionless gaze on his face.

"And what about you? Can you truly say that you know enough of me not to trust me?" Marine rolled her eyes at him.

"Oh please. You're just veering the topic so that you can corner me instead."

"Really now? Are you sure? Maybe I'm just telling this to you so you can open your eyes to the truth and realize that you're wrong about your preconceived conceptions of me."

"Oh yeah? And what's wrong with my conception of you as a lying, cheating, traitorous pirate?! You're willing to trade anything and anyone just to get what you want right? You always seem to help others out but what they don't know is that you usually do it for your own personal reasons. You would never do anything without getting something beneficial from it in return and you would betray your allies to save yourself. In fact, you've already done that when you agreed to help Will save Elizabeth just to use him as a bargaining chip to get back the Black Pearl. You would give me away if it meant you would be spared from the danger."

"And how would you know if that is the only essence of who I am? So what if you've seen me or read about me before? That doesn't mean you know every single bit about me. I bet the authors don't know what's running through my mind in every single moment that passes by." He paused here in thought and had a slightly horrified look. "Do they?" Marine ignored his question and poked his chest angrily with her finger, making Jack wince in pain.

"If you think my perception of you is wrong, then prove it! Tell me why you never told me about your conversation with my clone. Tell me why you were so worried about me being the one in charge while you were still under recovery. And tell me why you decided to help me out for absolutely no reason at all!"

"Do you really want to know?!" Jack shouted, his brain finally snapping in irritation. "The reason why I never told you about your bloody clone is because I was afraid of becoming under suspicion! I'm not a bloody idiot Marine. I know what everyone would think as soon as I told you about it; that I would betray you just to get what I bloody want and to escape danger from the clone. You would never trust me once that doubt starts to grow, and you'd use that trust against me just so you could do whatever you want with my bloody ship! My life is already filled with traitorous, secretive bastards and I don't need you or Carrie to be added to that list. The two of you have trusted me throughout this adventure so far, and I didn't want that to go away." When he stopped he realized what he was doing and took a deep breath, trying to keep his anger as light as he could make it. Marine looked at him in surprise, and that gave him the motive to go on.

"Back then, you had trusted me enough to tell me your true identity. You trusted me enough to go with you on this voyage to help you fight against your clone. You trusted me enough to tell me your worries and troubles after we departed from Port Nassau. When you were in need of help, you trusted me to help you. When I asked you to trust me when we were discussing about Carrie, you said yes. Don't deny it. I never forced you to trust me and my judgment, you just did. And that really bugs me a lot! Because I've never encountered someone who trusts me wholeheartedly, knowing who I am and what I do. In all this time that I've known you, you have never betrayed my trust and stayed loyal throughout this adventure. You knew that I was a liar, a cheater, and a man who would betray others to save myself and yet you still trusted me with all this."

"But that's cause...I never...but I..." Marine found herself at a great loss for words. She realized that everything Jack had said was true. Before the trust broke apart, she had done nothing but believe in Jack. Then, as she thought more of it, she looked away from him and spoke in a mumble, "No, I haven't told you everything I knew. I still didn't tell you where Cornelius told me the treasure was buried in. So you can't really say that I trust you completely.

"But if I had asked then, before this whole situation erupted, you would have told me the location. My point is, you trusted me enough to tell me everything you know and not to question too much on what I was planning to do.

"Fine then. I did trust you Jack...I didn't want to believe that lying and cheating were the only things you were capable of. And it would have been better if you had told me the truth rather than hid it from my knowledge. At least I would have given you a chance. That's just how I think. I would never abuse you or your trust if you do trust me the way I trusted you. You never gave me a reason not to trust you so I found no reason to be suspicious of you..."

"And I still haven't." Jack said, pulling her arm closer towards him and forcing her to face him eye to eye. "Look Marine, I'm really sorry about keeping what I knew a secret from you. If I had known that it would turn out this way I would have shouted it out to the whole world. I would do anything to have our relationship back to the way it was before; back when you still trusted me like a friend." Marine looked down as she gently pried her arm away from Jack's hold.

"Why?" She whispered. Jack froze at the question and began to move back from her. Marine waited for an answer and realized that, because he couldn't answer it right away, she didn't want to know. The silence was thick and awkward to both pirates and so Marine broke it, having had enough.

"It would never go back to the way it was Jack...what's done is done. There's nothing we can do about that." Jack dropped his arms to his sides and couldn't look at Marine. He didn't want to look like a desperate and pathetic man so he just left it at that. But he widened his eyes in surprise as he felt Marine move closer to him.

"I have a bad feeling that I'm going to regret this decision in the future, but I've had enough of worrying about that. After all, a very good friend of mine told me long ago that I shouldn't waste my time worrying about something that shouldn't be worried over. Therefore, I think that instead of trying to go back to the past, we should start this so-called relationship all over again. And this time, we're going to trust each other 100 percent no matter what happens." She turned her head to face him with a small smile. "Do you think you're up for it, Captain Jack Sparrow?" Jack was at a loss for words, but he could feel happiness spreading throughout his self as much as he hated to admit it. He blinked then cleared his throat before giving her his trademark grin in return.

"I always did love a good challenge."

* * *

"Any sign of them?" 

"Nothing."

"...Maybe you're not looking hard enough."

"Oh shut it Sparrow. Why don't you stop sitting on that damn throne of yours and help me look for the ship?"

"I can't find the ship now when it's getting dark."

"Then help me look for it tomorrow."

"Can't you see this awful injury I have that's killing me? Have you no mercy towards the injured? You shouldn't be forcing me to do all these tiring work when my health is still recovering."

**SLAP!**

"Ow! What was that for?"

"If you're still alive after that then I'm sure you can survive walking and looking for a ship."

"...damn wench." Marine stopped what she was doing - which was preparing the fire - and looked over her shoulder at Jack. Then she gave him what most would call Jack's trademark grin.

"Pirate." Jack frowned at Marine as he watched her go back to making a fire with two flint stones.

"That's my line! You can't steal that."

"Well I don't see your name on said line. Therefore it's not yours to own and to decide who can use it." Marine replied as she fumbled with the rocks. She narrowed her eyes when, no matter how many times she scraped them together, she couldn't get them to make a spark. Jack continued to watch for a few more moments before heaving a heavy sigh and moving closer to her. Before Marine could open her mouth and say a word, he had taken the stones from her and began walking out of the cave they were in.

"Hey! Where are you going with those stones?"

"To a place where we could actually make a fire." Jack answered. Marine narrowed her eyes and grumbled as she stood up from the pile of wood she had made and carried it out closer to the shore, where Jack was currently standing and waiting for her. She dropped them in front of Jack and sat down with her elbows propped against her legs and her head leaning on her hands. She looked at him expectantly, like a child waiting for a magician to perform his trick. Jack ignored her stare and kneeled before the pile then began to scrape the two stones together. After a few tries a spark caught the tip of the wood and began to form a large fire. He looked up at Marine and gave her a smug grin. "See? Not so hard if you have the experience." Marine snorted as she rolled her eyes.

"Right...and I guess three days on a deserted island drinking nothing but rum is experience enough for a great pirate like yourself."

"Hey! Do not make fun of what I've gone through in the past. It was horrible you know, especially the second time when you conspired with Elizabeth to burn all the rum." Marine smiled and chuckled as she remembered what had happened before.

"Yeah, well too bad there's no rum on this island. If there was it would have been fun to burn it all again." Jack said nothing but was giving Marine a very irritated frown as she looked up at the sky and laughed. He watched her for a while and couldn't help but smile at seeing her so happy. Marine stopped laughing a few minutes later but continued looking up at the sky.

"Jack?"

"Hm?"

"Was I really so pathetic before all this?" She asked. Jack tilted his head to one side and stared at her in confusion.

"What was that love?"

"From the day we met each other in Tortuga, on the day we escaped my clone, and up to the day when I left the ship to ride on a rowboat...I don't know. I just feel so stupid for everything I've done then. I was being too selfish; I only thought of my problems and my issue with the clone. I never even bothered to consider what you, or Carrie, or Elizabeth, or Will, or even Norrington for that matter, had to say about it. I've been doing things, making decisions, forcing you guys to go with me every time we encounter a problem. I never even bothered to think of whether you actually wanted to do all this; if you guys wanted to risk your lives just to help me." She wrapped her arms around her legs and pulled her knees closer to her chest. She rested her chin on her knee and let a small tear fall down from her eye. "It's my fault that my foster parents were killed. I don't want the same to happen to you guys." Jack recalled what Carrie had said back then, and gave a soft sigh as he placed a hand on her shoulder.

"Look love, what Carrie said back there...it wasn't really intended. I mean, she would never think of you that way. She was angry; you were both angry and stressed out. It's good to let out a little steam from time to time. Keeps ye from being daft. I should know. I've been there." Marine's expression stayed the same even with Jack's attempt to cheer her up. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath before holding her chin and forcing her to look at him. "Marine, if there's anyone in the world I know who isn't selfish, it's you. The reason why Elizabeth, Will and I agreed to go with you was not your fault. We wanted to help you out. If you think you were forcing us to do something we didn't like then you're a bugger. You know how forceful Lizzie could be when she wants something. You're not to blame for everything that's happening now. And Carrie, well it's not your fault that she came here and it's not her fault either. Things just...happen. You were worried about her because unlike you, she has no experience in pirating whatsoever. And you didn't want her to get hurt both physically and mentally from all this. That's natural for someone who cares about their loved ones."

"And Norrington?"

"Nory's just a big old pansy who has no say in this whatsoever." Marine laughed and looked at Jack with a smile on her face. Jack smiled back at her. "Yes, I admit that you went a wee bit overboard after hearing about my little talk with your clone," At this Marine narrowed her eyes and raised one skeptical eyebrow at him. Jack ignored her and went on. "...but aside from that, you're still the same sly, annoying wench I saved from drowning all those months ago. And I don't find any reason why you should change who you are now." Marine felt her heart swell and her stomach flutter with butterflies. She turned a slight shade of pink and looked away from Jack so he wouldn't see her face.

"Thanks for cheering me up Jack." She mumbled.

"Anytime love. Anytime." The pirate returned and lied back on the sandy shore. He placed his arms under his head and closed his eyes, reveling in the peaceful sounds of the waves crashing on the shore and the sound of crickets calling each other from the forest. After a short moment of silence, he spoke up again. "You know what? I'm feeling a lot better now that I've gotten my well deserved rest. I think that I'll be well enough to handle watching out for the ship to-" He couldn't finish his sentence as he felt light, soft lips cover his own. He widened his eyes and felt his whole body freeze as Marine kneeled on top of him and kissed him gently. He closed his eyes and breathed in the smell of sand, sea and her own natural sweaty scent. It made his mind feel hazy and dazed. Of all the crazy things he thought Marine was capable of, he never thought she would be capable of this. Before he could have the chance to react, Marine pulled away, stood up, and began walking away from him, just along the shore. Jack sat up and simply stared at her retreating form; his mind still fuzzy from what had just transpired a few seconds ago. He let his fingers touch his lips, and pulled them away quickly as if burned by hot metal.

_That was very unexpected...and not fair. She shouldn't have done that. Between the two of us it's usually me who makes the first move. No woman beats Captain Jack Sparrow in making the first move. No one's supposed to catch me off-guard._ He closed his eyes and rubbed his face with his hands vigorously before falling back onto the sand.

"Bloody wench..." A few minutes after Marine left, his ears picked up the sound of rustling leaves and footsteps headed his way. He immediately sat up from the ground and narrowed his eyes at the direction where the sound came from. His hand fell to his pistol which lay on the holster hanging on his belt. As soon as the leaves in front of him moved back to reveal a person, he aimed his gun and pulled the trigger. Nothing happened when he did though, and he realized that it was still wet from his earlier trip into the water during the storm. He cursed as he dropped his useless gun to the ground and watched the newcomer make his way towards him with a gun in his hand.

* * *

Marine was making her way back to where their temporary camp was after noting that it was going to be too dark to see anything soon. After walking away from Jack without saying anything, she sat down on a rock in the forest and reveled in the peace and quiet. Things somehow always become hectic whenever she was close around Jack. The most recent stunt she did surprised even herself. She never thought she would have the guts to kiss Jack first when he's been making the first move ever since. She wondered what Jack was thinking off right now, and what kind of reaction she was going to see when she came back later. Somehow the unpredictable pirate made her uncomfortable. She had no idea what he was going to do about it, and it truly scared her out of her wits. That was why she took her time in coming back, struggling with the darkness for as long as she could. 

She half-hoped that Jack would be asleep by the time she arrived. Then it would make things less troublesome for her. For one thing, she could claim not to remember a thing that happened when morning came. Or if she was really lucky, Jack would have forgotten all about it.

Her head turned upwards at the dark sky that was already twinkling with stars. Without the life in the city, the electric lights coming from all the neon signs, streetlights and windows of both houses and buildings, the stars were able to shine and be seen by anyone standing outside. It was an advantage of being on a place where technology hasn't reached that far yet. The sight of all the stars in the sky reminded her of the time she and Jack were talking about constellations on the deck of the ship. She suddenly gritted her teeth and clenched her hands into fists.

_Everywhere I go I think about that damn annoying pirate! _She gave a very heavy sigh and went on with her walk._ I might as well go there now. That way I can just get this stupid thing over with and stop thinking about Jack Sparrow._

But as she got nearer to their campsite, she began to feel more and more suspicious. Somehow without even seeing it, she sensed that there was something terribly wrong. Worried about Jack, she moved faster and pushed a couple of vines away as she came out of the forest and saw the shore before her. She turned her head to the side and widened her eyes in surprise when she saw Jack being held by a couple of pirates and her clone, standing right beside him.

"Well, well, well. If it isn't my so-called twin. How's life been for you so far?" She asked with a wide grin on her face. Marine widened her eyes and gaped her mouth open in shock.

"W-w-what the hell are you doing here?!" She shouted as her hands fell to the pistol on the holster hanging on her belt. "Leave me alone and get lost or else-" Before she could get her hands on her gun, she felt a cold metallic barrel behind her back.

"Or else what? You'll kill us? Now, now, now my dear. You can't do that. If you do, then I'll make sure that when my man fires, you'll still be living long enough for me to get your half of the soul. Either way you can't kill me because that would mean you'd never get my half of the soul." Her clone said.

"How'd you find us?" Marine asked. "We were too far away for you to follow us directly." The clone retained the wide smile as she turned her head to Jack.

"Well we had some help of course. We wouldn't have gotten here if it wasn't for you, right Jack?" She asked as she turned her head to the person she was speaking to. The pirate widened his eyes in surprise and sharply turned his head to Marine who stood there in stunned silence.

"Don't listen to a thing she says Marine! I didn't do it! I would never do that to you."

"Oh really? Because a while ago, you were begging me to take Marine away from you so you wouldn't be involved in her problems any longer. Didn't you tell me that you would rather save your life than risk it for someone like her?"

"I never said anything like that." Jack said indignantly. His pleading eyes settled on Marine. "You have to believe me Marine. Do you think I would break your trust just after getting it back a while ago?" Marine looked down, her hair covered her whole face and kept anyone from seeing her expression. The clone's face looked mildly surprised as she moved her gaze from Jack and Marine.

"Am I hearing things correctly? Break your trust? It seems I've stepped into quite a tense relationship here." She walked around Jack until her back was in front of him. "Then again, I wouldn't expect any less from my dear old Marine. We think alike you know, and so I know that you became suspicious of him after I told you about our little meeting. But I never thought you'd give him a second chance this quickly. You've gotten worse than I first expected."

"And what is that supposed to mean?" Marine asked while gritting her teeth in frustration. The clone smiled back mysteriously.

"Oh you and I both know exactly what I meant by that."

"Stop comparing yourself to me!" Marine snapped. "We don't think the same way and we never will! You and I are never going to be alike!" The clone laughed aloud all of a sudden, making Marine's irritation grow even larger.

"Oh that's really priceless! Just so you know, in case you have forgotten, I am a part of you. Therefore I have your looks, your skills, your mind, your personality and your way of thinking. It's impossible for the two of us not to be alike." She said.

"From the moment you parted from my soul, you were entirely different from me." Marine growled. "Don't ever claim to be me."

"Oh I won't. Who would want to be a poor half-broken woman who gave her trust to a pirate twice in a row? That's just plain stupid if you ask me." She said with a grin. Marine narrowed her eyes at her clone but as she ran forward with her fist pulled back, it was to Jack she had set her target on. To everyone's surprise, she landed a very hard punch to Jack's cheek, sending the two of them crashing to the ground. Marine sat above Jack with tears falling down from her eyes. And with a loud cry she began to beat Jack as hard as she could.

"Damn you Jack Sparrow! Damn you to hell! I trusted you, you bloody backstabbing bastard! How could you betray me just after we swore to each other never to lose one another's trust again? Why don't you just die and go to hell you stupid stupid ass. I should have never agreed...I can't believe how stupid I was to believe half the crap you were telling me." She shouted while she punched him repeatedly. Jack couldn't and didn't want to fight back. He just stayed silence and tried to block her attacks with his hands as much as he could.

"It's too late to have regrets now...you've made your decision and because of it you're going to fall into your impending doom." Marine's clone said. It had no effect on Marine whatsoever; she still continued to attack Jack with heated passion. With a hesitant sigh, she raised her hand and gave her men a signal. The other pirates looked at each other before moving closer to Marine. They surrounded her and had to struggle a lot before they managed to restrain her and pull her away from the pirate. By that time Marine had already given Jack enough damage to keep him from moving from his spot. The clone walked towards Marine and waited for the other woman to recover her breath before speaking.

"That was very childish of you. But I give you points for venting your anger on Jack. It was his fault you're being captured now. You were unpredictable, though you are too pissed off and in rage to be thinking straight. If you were really thinking, you would know that resistance is futile and you ought to just give up and come with us instead of wasting your energy and strength on something as stupid and pathetic as beating someone up." She said. The clone's men stepped back apprehensively as Marine jerked her hand away from their hold. But instead of fighting back like the men had feared, she slumped her shoulders and let her head hung low in defeat. The clone was satisfied and nodded to the men as a signal. The pirates moved closer to Marine and tied her up with a rope before pulling her away towards their ship.

Jack was still lying down on the ground while all this was going on. He had no strength to fight back and try to save Marine from their clutches. His hands scooped up sand and he crushed this as hard as he could, releasing all his frustration on it, knowing that he couldn't save Marine in his current state and let her know that he was telling the truth and that he didn't betray her. The clone was the last to leave him there, but before she did, she walked up to him and looked down to gaze at him with mock pity.

"You poor, poor thing. Did her attack hurt you that much?" Jack narrowed her eyes at the clone then turned his head away from her gaze.

"Just leave me alone."

"As you wish. It is, after all, part of our deal." She gave him a smile that reminded him of Marine's then walked away. "Thanks for helping me get to her Jack Sparrow." Jack said nothing as he listened to the clone's footsteps fade away until there he couldn't hear anything except the waves crashing onto the shore. His body was still too sore to move about but he forced himself to sit up. Grunting and wincing in pain, Jack looked around to see the extent of Marine's attack on him. Most of her punches had landed on his chest and stomach, but for some strange reason she had strayed away from his injury. The left side of his cheek was throbbing in pain, and he could feel it beginning to swell. He wished more than ever to have a bottle of rum in his hands right now.

The fire he made continued to blaze and make black smoke rise into the air. And it was at that moment when a ship passed by the island and caught sight of it. A rowboat was lowered and people with two lanterns began to row towards the island as quickly as they could. Jack immediately recognized the ship and fell back onto the sandy ground with a loud thud.

_Couldn't they have come sooner than this? Bugger them..._


	26. Behind the Lie

**AN:** Thank you to those who have reviewed! I really appreciate it. And I'm sorry for taking too long in updating. I had a lot of projects and exams to deal with this month. But it's almost at an end so I decided to post so you'd know that I'm still alive. Well then, here's the next chapter. Enjoy! And don't forget to read and review.

* * *

_**"And before you're going to ask me what I want it for, here lies all the answer to our questions." - Jack Sparrow**_

**Chapter 26 - Behind the Lie**

"Jack!" Elizabeth was the first to get close to Jack and kneeled beside him worriedly after placing the lantern to one side. She saw the large bruise on his cheek and was concerned as she saw more of them all over his chest. "What happened here? Who did this to you? And where's Marine?" The others caught up after this and looked at Jack's state with surprise.

"Actually love, all your questions have only one answer." The pirate muttered. Elizabeth looked at Jack expectantly, causing the pirate to sigh. "Marine's clone arrived on this island a while ago and took her away. That bloody wench made Marine believe that it was my fault and that I betrayed her when it actually wasn't true. Marine was so furious that she left me something to remember her by before she left with them." He explained. Carrie clenched her hands into fists and gritted her teeth in frustration.

"She's so inconsiderate of others' opinions!" She muttered. "Didn't she even try to think of Jack's own situation? Why would she believe the clone more instead of Jack?"

"Not her fault love." Jack said. "After all, I am who I am. And besides, she was not thinking straight. That clone got to her well." Everyone was surprised with his attempt to defend Marine that they almost didn't notice Jack trying to stand up. Gibbs moved up close to help him to his feet.

"Let's get back on the ship and see to those wounds of yours." He said. Then as they made their way back to the rowboat, Gibbs asked Jack a question. "What's our next heading Captain?" Jack raised his finger and was about to point to a direction when he realized that he still had no idea where they were supposed to meet AnaMaria's boat and faltered.

"I...I'll get back to you on that mate." Jack said. On the outside, he seemed calm and at ease. On the inside he was rampaging all over, trying to think of a plan to go after the clone and save Marine. Everyone hopped into the rowboat and went back onto the Black Pearl with the lanterns unlit so as not to be seen by unwanted eyes. The first thing Jack did was order some of the men on the crew to light lanterns up. He had been on the island for a while and he knew that it was uninhabited before he and Marine got there.

He was glad to feel the wooden planks under him and realized that he missed the soothing sway of the ship as it moved together with the waves. He walked together with Gibbs into his cabin but not before ordering the crew to continue sailing in the general direction they were going to before and to bring the doctor into his cabin plus at least five bottles of rum. Gibbs, Elizabeth and Carrie entered the room and began to deal with Jack's wounds while Norrington simply followed and watched them from the side. A few moments later Roderic arrived with a fresh set of bandages and a small bowl of clean water. Carter followed right behind the doctor while juggling five bottles in his hands. Elizabeth was helping Jack remove his vest and his shirt when she took note of the makeshift bandage wrapped around Jack's bullet wound.

"Did you fix that yourself while you were at the island?" She asked as she removed it and handed the slightly bloodied bandage to Jack. The pirate took it from Elizabeth and realized that it was a part of his old sash. He never remembered ripping the piece from the whole, but then again he couldn't remember a thing from when he was running a high fever. So he could only assume that it was the only other person with him on the island who had bandaged him up. He said nothing about it and instead grabbed one of the bottles from Carter and took a large sip. Elizabeth fought back a sigh as she helped Roderic clean Jack's wounds.

"Strange...if I attacked someone I was truly mad at, these wounds would have been worse than they are now." Gibbs pointed out as he watched. Jack stopped drinking and narrowed his eyes at his first mate.

"Are you implying that I should have been in a worse state than I am now? And you! Drop those bottles on the side of my bed and get back to work!" Carter immediately rushed to Jack's beside, almost spilling the rum in the bottles in his hurry to please the captain, then ran out of the cabin and closed the door with a bang. Once he was out of sight, Jack's attention was riverted back to Gibbs. "Well?" Elizabeth was about to say 'yes' in answer to Jack's question but thought better of it and shook her head. Jack was in a really bad mood, and she didn't need to fuel his anger and irritation more.

"No, he wasn't implying anything like that Jack. He just meant that Marine's attacks on you were weak. It must be the effect of her soul being parted into two."

"Sharpshooter Marine is weak?" Norrington interrupted. Everyone looked at him in surprise as he stepped forward closer to Jack. "Forgive my intrusion Mrs. Turner, but are you saying that someone like Marine could inflict such minor wounds on Jack in her full rage and fury? She has indeed grown weaker, but she is no fool." He pointed at Jack's chest as he continued to speak. "Marine is a pirate, and pirates play dirty. She would have punched Sparrow in the spot that hurts the most. But as you have noticed, all of the bruises on Jack' body stray away from the wound. It was as if she deliberately avoided hitting that spot."

"So you're saying that she wasn't really trying to beat up Jack or kill him? But I thought Marine didn't trust Jack anymore and hated his guts for it?" Carrie asked.

"Well technically we had spoken to each other and had mended our differences while we were on the island. It only came back when the clone appeared and told her that I betrayed her." Jack pointed out. "And that was the main reason why she was furious with me." He explained.

"Well then, it's possible that in her fury she had lost all sense of logic and just followed her primary instincts. Or what she did could mean something else entirely." Norrington said. Everyone stared at him, trying to understand what he was trying to say.

"And your point is...?" Jack asked. Norrington gave a frustrated sigh and rolled his eyes.

"I don't know. I was just giving out the facts. What you think of it doesn't matter to me." He said. He turned around and began walking towards the door. "I'll be outside helping the men." He closed the door behind him, leaving an awkwardly silent room. Both Elizabeth and Carrie looked at each other in confusion before the latter stood up.

"I'll go and see how the crew's doing." She nodded to each person in the room before walking out of the room and looking up at the dark sky. As she looked about, she caught sight of Norrington standing by the railing and couldn't help but smirk. She made her way towards him as silently as she could and stopped right by his side.

"So in what way are you helping the crew by standing there and looking out on the sea?" She asked with a grin. Norrington turned his head to her and smirked back.

"I help them by not being in their way. They're fine on their own with or without my help." Carrie couldn't help but chuckle at that.

"You have a point. So you don't mind if I stand here with you and help the crew by not doing anything as well?"

"Do whatever you wish. It doesn't matter to me." The two of them fell silent with nothing else to say. Carrie played with her fingers for a while before looking at Norrington with a serious expression on her face.

"...why did you say what you did a while ago?"

"Excuse me?" Norrington turned his attention to her with a confused look on his face.

"You said that you think it's possible that Vanessa was not angry at Jack...that she still trusted him somehow. That maybe Jack still has a chance to redeem himself with Vanessa." Norrington widened his eyes.

"I never said such a thing!" He scoffed. "Why would I say something like that to Sparrow?"

"You didn't say it, but you were hinting at it. Oh don't give me that look! I know what you tried to do back there and there's no use denying it. I think you were trying to give Jack hope in trying to save Vanessa or having the motivation to continue on with this voyage." Norrington gave a short, sarcastic laugh.

"Ha! Give him hope? The man's hopeless as a pirate. It would take more than what I did to give that man hope. The only reason I said it was to keep him from moping around the ship or being such an annoying captain to his crew, which unfortunately still includes me. He looked like he was going to do even more foolish and idiotic things while he's busy worrying about his feelings for that other pirate. We don't need the man in charge losing his sanity and bringing everyone else down with him." Carrie looked down on the ground after Norrington said this.

"So you noticed it too huh? That Jack somehow has stronger feelings for Vanessa compared to everyone else." Norrington didn't reply to her; merely continued looking at her. "And it's even more obvious that Vanessa has feelings for him as well. I can see it in their actions toward each other and the way they converse. It's a wonder they haven't noticed that yet."

"Hard to believe that the infamous Jack Sparrow is growing feelings for a young woman pirate." Norrington mused. "I myself think it's just something that my mind made up to amuse me. Pirates in love? The world must be turning upside down if things like that are happening." He said with a slight shake of his head.

"What? You think pirates aren't allowed to love? What about Jack? How did you think he came into existence? Poofed out of nowhere? And what about Will? His dad was a pirate too! But he loved his wife, Will's mother, as much as he loved his son." Carrie countered, her eyes narrowing at Norrington. "Just because you've had one impression of a pirate, doesn't mean that everyone else has the same personality."

"Why must you always defend those dirty scoundrels?" Norrington asked her. "Your wonderful fantasies of those types of people have deluded you from their real intent. These pirates are not going to show mercy to you or save you whenever you're in danger. Pirates steal, rape and murder people!"

"If that's what you think Norrington, then tell me why you're standing here on a pirate ship unharmed and free from the brig?" Carrie asked. "You're just to big-headed and stubborn to accept that there are people in this world who can be pirates and be good men at the same time. Not everyone is after the gold or the fame. Some, like Jack Sparrow, are in it for the adventure!" Norrington gritted his teeth in irritation and turned his back on Carrie. Then he began to walk away.

"Tell him that after he gets some kind of reward or treasure from all this trouble he's going through. Jack Sparrow never does anything without benefits to himself." Carrie continued to stand there and watched Norrington head towards the stairs leading below the deck. She waited until he was out of her sight before looking back up at the sky and giving out a loud and weary sigh.

"Am I really that childish and naive?"

* * *

One week passed by without any important event occurring and with the ship simply moving to no specific direction at all. Norrington's words did somehow give hope to Jack, and he's been keeping to himself in the Captain's cabin ever since. Part of the reason was because he had to recover from his injuries, but knowing Jack, he would have gone out of his cabin whether anyone has a say in it or not. Elizabeth didn't know whether to think of this as a good thing or a bad thing. Roderic and Gibbs were just glad that Jack was not hurting himself even further or giving the rest of the crew a bad time.

Elizabeth knocked on the cabin door and didn't wait for someone from the inside to open it. She already knew that no matter how much she knocked, no one was going to answer it. With a sigh, she asked one of the crew to open the door for her and entered the dark room. Although it was still daytime, the curtains drawn against the windows kept most of the light from coming into the room. The place felt gloomy and scary because of it. Elizabeth found Jack lying on his bed and simply staring up at the ceiling of the room as usual, and placed the tray of food she was carrying on the table across his bed. She looked at Jack and crossed her arms at him.

"When are you going to let us in your mind Jack?" She asked him. "You've been inside this room for a week now. Your injuries have recovered enough to make you mobile but you still prefer to stay inside here with those curtains drawn like some kind of depressed man." Jack said nothing in reply to her. This made the young blond haired woman frown. "Jack, we're all worried about you. You should be out there, steering the helm of your ship." This caught Jack's attention, and made him turn his head towards Elizabeth as he sat up on the bed. He had no shirt on since he had no bandages wrapped around his wound; Roderic had told him that letting it stay uncovered helps heal the flesh faster. His hair was messier than usual and his face was pale and thinner from not eating a lot. The only thing that remained in tact was his consumption of rum, as seen by the number of bottles scattered all over the floor.

"How can I steer my ship when I don't have a bloody idea where we're going? There are only two people who know the location of the Cursed Treasure. One is on the other ship and the other has been taken away by her clone. No matter how much I try, we would never get to the others in time." Jack told her.

"But you can't just sit there and do nothing about it!"

"I'm trying to do something." Jack countered. "I'm trying to remember every single conversation Marine and I had after our meeting with Cornelius. I'm trying to see if I could get an idea of where this treasure is from her words and her conversations with the old man."

"...and?"

"I have nothing. Both of them have been so secretive about the location that I couldn't even make a guess of where the chest could be hidden in."

"Maybe what Norrington said before was right." Elizabeth and Jack were startled by the new voice and swiveled their heads around to find Carrie standing by the door frame with her arms crossed. Ever since she and Marine had their fight, she was never cheerful for a long while. Her smiles always came in long intervals and they were quick to boot. It made Elizabeth worry for the other woman.

"Could you please explain that further love?" Jack asked. "Because I could barely remember a thing he said back then."

"Norrington said that maybe Vanessa wasn't really trying to beat you up or kill you. That it was to imply something else. Maybe a trick to make the clone believe that her plan in breaking your trust in each other work." She said. Jack placed a finger to his chin and furrowed his brows in thought.

"Go on..."

"Try to remember the time you were on the island, when you met up with Vanessa's clone. Could she have done something or said anything that would imply that she still trusted you?" Jack's frown grew as he thought about it. Even Elizabeth was looking expectantly at Jack, eager to see if Jack could get something out of what Carrie said; a lead in their endless circle of uneventful moments.

"The last time we talked was before she walked away from camp to...er...rest. Yeah that's right. After she walked away to take a break from taking care of me, the next time we were to see each other was when her clone arrived. She said nothing to me that seemed to say she still trusted me. And I don't think that anyone would beat up someone they trusted unless..." Jack's eyes widened as a thought came to his mind. Immediately he jumped out of the bed and went out of his cabin. Elizabeth and Carrie stood there in shock and turned around to watch Jack shout for Roderic. The doctor appeared around the corner and looked at Jack both in confusion and curiosity.

"What is it Captain?"

"Where's the shirt I was wearing before I came here?" He asked. "Where is it?" Roderic looked surprised and even more confused.

"Huh? Uh...I think I remember one of the crew washing the blood from it and bringing it back into your cabin after. Why do you need it Captain?" Jack grumbled as he turned around and walked back to his cabin without giving any answer to Roderic's question. He went past Elizabeth and Carrie, who were still by the cabin door looking at him strangely, towards his chest of belongings. He crouched before it, opened it and threw clothes, papers and other jewelries everywhere. One of the gold bracelets rolled towards the two women and landed in front of Elizabeth. She picked this up then walked towards Jack.

"What is it that you're looking for?" She asked him.

"My shirt. The one I wore while I was on the island. And before you're going to ask me what I want it for, here lies all the answer to our questions." He took out his white shirt from the chest with a triumphant sound and unfolded it as quickly as possible. He held it out in front of him and inspected it closely. After a while his face fell in disappointment.

"Where is it? If Marine was going to give me some kind of message then it must have been here." He stood up from the ground and made his way back out of his cabin.

"Roderic!" The doctor had not moved from his spot after Jack left and this made it easier for the Captain. "Where is the man who washed my shirt? I want to speak to him now! Well? What are you waiting for? Get moving!" The man shook his head clear of the previous shock and ran about the deck shouting for the name of the man he was looking for. A few minutes later the man himself came up to Jack, scratching his head and looking a bit fearful of his Captain. They have all seen him in his worst of moods and was afraid of what Jack was going to do to him.

"Aye Capt'n? What ye be callin' me for?" He asked.

"Did you recall washing this shirt for me after I came aboard the Pearl?" Jack asked as he waved his shirt in front of the man.

"Aye."

"Was there anything on this shirt? Paper? A sign? A message?"

"A message?" The pirate placed a finger to his chin in deep thought. "Well...I don't remember seeing any paper or any object on the shirt." At this Jack's shoulders slumped forward and his head hung down in defeat. The pirate swallowed a nervous lump in his throat and waited to see what Jack was going to order him next. Everyone watched Jack turn around and begin walking back into his cabin to their relief.

"Thank ye mate. Get back to work." The pirate immediately walked away from the front of the door in fear of angering Jack in his slowly darkening mood. Elizabeth and Carrie looked at each other in worry.

"Poor Jack...his hopes had come up high when I suggested the idea that maybe Vanessa left a message...maybe I shouldn't have said it." Carrie said guiltily. Elizabeth shook her head as she held Carrie's hand and squeezed them tightly.

"Don't say that Carrie! You had every right to say that and if you hadn't, then maybe there would have been no hope for Jack at all. At least you gave him strength and hope for a while." She said. Carrie didn't seem all that relieved or happy about it though.

* * *

**PANT. PANT. PANT.**

Fabric swirled around Elizabeth's legs and kept her from running as quickly as she could. Her breathing became short and ragged as she made her way through the dark corridor and up onto the main deck of the Black Pearl. Other men who were outside working stopped for a moment to look at Elizabeth before going back to their own businesses. Carrie was at the bow looking beyond the sea when she heard rushing footsteps and turned her head back in curiosity. She saw Elizabeth standing in front of the Captain's cabin and knocking on it over and over again. She jogged towards the other blond haired girl and tilted her head sideways.

"What on earth are you doing Elizabeth?"

"I have to tell Jack something important!" She explained between pounding the door and taking big, deep breaths. "Open the door Jack! Don't make me ask someone to knock it down. Please Jack! I've got something that will really interest you." Just as she was going to knock again, the door opened and revealed a not-so cheerful Jack Sparrow.

"What the bloody hell do you want?" He muttered. Elizabeth and Carrie were stunned into silence. They hadn't seen Jack after their previous discussion. Another one week had really brought Jack down to the lowest pit of hell. He looked broken and defeated, without any of that humorous glint of mischief in his eyes. He narrowed his eyes at the two women and began to close the door when Elizabeth broke away from her shock and held the door open.

"Jack! You have to see this! I think it's from Marine."

"What are you talking about? How would a message from Marine come to you?" He asked. Elizabeth took out a piece of crumpled paper in her hands and held it out to Jack. The pirate took this and uncrumpled it while Elizabeth was explaining how she had gotten it.

"I was down at the galley passing by the crew's quarters when I heard them talking about something they had found when you came onto the Black Pearl. They told me that it fell from you while we brought you to the cabin that night." Jack said nothing as he smoothed out the rumpled paper and read what was on it in silence. Then slowly, but gradually, he widened his eyes and grinned manically. A few seconds later his face fell and he furrowed his brows in deep thought. After a moment his eyes widened again this time in horror. He shot back into his cabin and came out looking a lot cleaner and fresher since he came back on the Pearl. He went past Elizabeth and Carrie again, who both stared at him strangely, while cursing silently to himself. Jack went to the main deck, running around and shouting orders to the crew as loudly as he could.

"Cotton turn us 180 degrees around! We're going back to Port Royal! Don't just stand there you lazy scallywags! Move it before I decide to throw you overboard to feed you to the sharks! Unfurl all the sails we have! I want us to pick up as much wind as we could get. Hop to it men!" At his command, the crew members of the Black Pearl began to move about the ship as quickly as they could. He caught sight of young Carter running together with the others and stopped him.

"Carter, go into my cabin and get me a piece of paper, and the quill and bottle of ink at my desk. Bring them to me." He ordered. Carter nodded and rushed off to get the things Jack needed. Elizabeth and Carrie, together with Gibbs who came to their side when he heard all the commotion, went up to Jack who had taken over Cotton's job at the helm and was steering the ship with newfound vigor.

"What's in your head Captain? If we went back to Port Royal then we'll never get to wherever it is that we're supposed to meet!" Gibbs complained.

"I know you're upset about not knowing where to meet Will and the others while Marine's clone has her captive on their own ship, but giving up like this isn't going to help." Elizabeth argued.

"Tell us what you know Jack!" Carrie cried in the end. Jack said nothing for a few minutes, making the three jump around in agitation. Then Norrington came and looked at them all with one eyebrow raised.

"What is going on here? Why are we heading back to Port Royal?" He asked and crossed his arms as he waited for an answer expectantly. Jack gave a heavy sigh as he turned his attention to them. Before he could open his mouth and answer, Carter came back with the materials he needed. Jack thanked the younger man and began to scribble on the paper furiously. Everyone tried to lean over to see what Jack was writing but the pirate was being too secretive about it and prevented anyone from taking a peek. Once he was finished writing he placed this on the pocket of his shirt and smiled in satisfaction. That was when he noticed all the strange stares he was getting from the others. He looked at them with a small frown and nodded slightly.

"All right. Since you're all so eager to know, we are going back to Port Royal to save Marine." This caught everyone by surprise. Carrie raised one eyebrow in confusion.

"What are you talking about? How can you save Marine if you're going to Port Royal when they're going somewhere else? If the clone really wanted to get Marine's half of the soul, wouldn't it be better for her if she went to the place where Cornelius and Vanessa's dad hid the Cursed Treasure? Just what was written on that piece of paper you got?" She asked him. Jack couldn't help but grin at everyone; it was the first time they've seen him so cheerful and so close to his usual behavior since he and Marine got into a fight.

"Well you see Carrie love, it would be well for them to head to said place if they knew where it was. And I'm very sure that Marine would rather die than tell them where it lies. They can't kill her as well because if they did then the point of capturing her alive would be pointless." He began.

"Just get to the point Sparrow." Norrington interrupted in irritation. But Jack ignored him and went on with his lengthy explanation, purposely making it even longer just to spite the former Commodore.

"So if we were to think like the clone, meaning think like Marine, trying to find the location of the place would be pointless and would waste a lot of time. Especially since we are riding on the fastest ship in the Caribbean, it wouldn't be well for her to risk wasting time for us to catch up to her. And so she has to find another way to get Marine's soul before we get to her. And what better way to solve all of her problems than to return to the place where Marine has first lost the coin she possessed intitally?" Everyone surrounding Jack widened their eyes in shock and realization. After the initial reaction, Elizabeth frowned with worry and concern.

"We have to get back there as fast as we could or it'll be too late!" She cried. "It's been two weeks already since Marine was taken by her clone. We might not get to her on time!"

"And that's exactly why we are setting sail back to Port Royal at full speed. Hopefully the winds shall be on our side and help our cause." Jack replied. "As for AnaMaria's ship and the others on board there, I shall be sending a letter to them when we arrive on the nearest island we could get to. After that it will be nothing but waters and sailing for us. Time is short so we must waste as little time as we could. I have a reputation to uphold as the pirate who owns the fastest ship on the Caribbean." Elizabeth looked at Jack in question.

"How are you going to send a letter to Will and the others if you don't know where we're supposed to meet?" She asked. At this question, Jack's face grew a very large and mysterious grin.

"Who said I don't know where it is?" If the group thought they couldn't be any more surprised, they were wrong. Carrie grabbed the front collar of Jack's shirt and shook him back and forth violently.

"You know where the treasure is?! WHERE IS IT? WHERE?? Why didn't you tell us any sooner?!" She shouted. Jack winced in pain from the volume of her shouts and tried to pry her hands away from his shirt as gently as he could.

"Now now Carrie, take it easy. I didn't know it until after you gave me this paper. I'm sure it was a message from Marine, telling us where we're supposed to go to help us get to Will and the others. But if she thinks that I'm going to leave her with her clone while we go to some island to get the cursed treasure then she doesn't know Captain Jack Sparrow as she thinks she does! Will and the others can go there and get it then meet up with us while we get back Marine into safe hands." Jack announced, making Elizabeth, Carrie and Gibbs smile cheerfully.

"Tell us Sparrow, where did Cornelius and Marine's father hid the treasure?" Norrington asked. Jack smiled as he passed the crumpled paper he had gotten from Elizabeth earlier to the others. Everyone moved around closer to read what was written on it.

_Captain Edward Teague_

"What does this mean? Who is this?" Elizabeth asked. Carrie slowly widened her eyes as she realized whose name it was.

"Edward Teague? But isn't that-" She cried in surprise. Jack looked at the younger blond haired woman and smiled as he quickly interrupted her.

"Aye lass, I am sure that you are very familiar with that name since Maria is. So have you figured out this secret place where Cornelius and her father kept the cursed treasure?"

"No. I still don't have any idea." Carrie said with furrowed brows. "I mean I know the name but I don't know what connection it has to the location." Elizabeth looked from Carrie to Jack and frowned.

"What on earth are you two talking about? Who is this man we are talking about?"

"Captain Edward Teague is Jack's father." Carrie explained. "If Marine wanted to tell Jack the location of the island, she would write it down so that no one would know of it. I think she was confident that her clone wouldn't understand that it was a location to something, but if the other pirates would then it would be trouble for her. So she used Teague's name to veer the pirates away from the real message; which was the location of the treasure. But I still don't get where this is." Carrie said as she turned her gaze to Jack once more. (1)

"So where is this location?" Norrington asked once more, gritting his teeth and trying to keep his anger and impatience in. Jack looked at them all with a serious face.

"Well since we are searching for a place, it must be associated with my father. Now my father was never much of an adventurer these days. I'm sure Marine knows that as well. She choose the name because she knew that there is only one place that is attributed to my father's name nowandays, though I don't understand why Carrie doesn't know of it. It is the place where my father is currently residing in; Shipwreck Cove."

_(1) If some of you are wondering how Marine and Carrie knew about Jack's father when they had just watched the second movie, then the reason behind it is because it had already been planned out that Jack's father would appear in the second movie. But since Keith Richards was not available then (i think he was sick) they didn't get to show him there. Nevertheless, the information is still known among fans of the movie. And I'm pretty sure that they still don't know about Shipwreck Cove. As to how Marine knew of it, well you'll have to wait and see. If you still think there has been some mistake in what I did then I apologize in advance._


	27. Struggling Against Time

_**"I'm sorry that we have to leave you in this manner. It seems that our time has been cut even shorter than before." - Cornelius Gashnet**_

**Chapter 27 - Struggling Against Time**

AnaMaria, Will, Cornelius and Jones all stood side by side behind the railing of AnaMaria's ship and stared at the landscape before them in wonder and shock. The other men who were working about the main deck were just as amazed as the four were, staring apprehensively at the broken masts, torn sails and rotten hulls that had scattered all around them. It was a gloomy and depressing sight for everyone on board. Out of the four standing and staring, only Cornelius was familiar to the place. But both AnaMaria and Jones had heard of the stories about it before, and were stunned with surprise at their realization.

"I can't believe the treasure has been hiding here all along...and without anyone knowing of it." Jones said in awe.

"It's been all under their noses, and none of them the wiser of its existence." AnaMaria said in agreement. "Had they known, this place would have been filled with more shipwrecks and corpses." She added. Will looked from AnaMaria, to Jones and lastly to Cornelius.

"What is this place?" He asked.

"This, my young friend, is called Shipwreck Island. One of the small inlet, called Shipwreck Cove, is home to a good pirate I knew back in the old days. The main city, Shipwreck City, is their headquarters or something similar to that. This is where the previous three Brethren Courts of the pirates were held." The old man explained. Will looked at Cornelius in confusion.

"Brethren Court?" Cornelius was about to open his mouth and explain further when he caught sight of a path between two mountain cliffs.

"There's no time to explain it now. We're about to go through The Devil's Throat. After that we'll head on to Shipwreck Cove. You should all go and help the crew swerve this ship through that passage in safety." He said, looking at all of them gravely. As if on cue, the ship began to rock as the violent waves crashed hard against the hull of the ship. "These wrecks weren't here because they wanted to be." Jones swallowed a lump in his throat that had suddenly formed at hearing Cornelius' story. AnaMaria nodded as she began shouting orders to the crew. Will and Jones walked away to help the other crew members while Cornelius went back to the helm and steered them through the mess.

_I wonder if Marine and the others have arrived already..._

Jones was pulling ropes as hard as he could when he caught sight of a strange looking bird flying past him and through the passageway. It flapped its wings quickly as it easily went past it and further into the island.

"I envy that bird." He said to Will as they continued to work. "It easily went past all the danger and into safety while all it had to do was flap its wings and fly." Will couldn't help but chuckle as he tied the rope to the mast.

"It's no use being jealous of a bird Jones. Let's just work hard so we can get there alive."

And so a few minutes later they did get past the obstacles and were slowly making their way to the dock where a number of other ships were lined up side by side. There was one vacant spot at the very end, and that was where they docked. AnaMaria allowed her men to explore the island but made them swear not to stray too far or get into any trouble inside. Then she, together with Will, Cornelius and Jones began to walk through the numerous paths that were built around the island and the buildings. They passed most of the ships that were lined up and looked expectantly at the flags that were raised and were flowing together with the wind. But they never saw the black flag with Jack Sparrow's jolly roger on it.

"We've passed by all the ships here but there's no sign of the Black Pearl anywhere." AnaMaria said. "Do you think they've docked their ship somewhere else?"

"That's not possible. If they did dock somewhere not on this island then they would have to use a rowboat to get inside. And no normal rowboat can withstand the force of the waves here. They would be dead before they can even reach this place." Cornelius pointed out. "It seems that we've arrived ahead of them. But I'm sure they're following right behind us and will arrive here within today or tomorrow."

"I hope Elizabeth and the others are all right..." Will added worriedly. "It seems strange that we would arrive before them, even though Jack's ship is known to be the fastest one in the Caribbean."

"They probably got caught up with something on the way here." Jones said in an effort to comfort him. "You know how Jack ends up meeting trouble and the sort even if he didn't want to. Relax. Those guys will definitely be here soon." Will slowly nodded in agreement.

"Aye, I guess you're right."

"While we're here waiting for the others, we can visit my old friend and take a break there. It would be good to see his face and catch up with him." Cornelius said. Everyone agreed to this suggestion and let the old man lead them through the maze-like path towards where his good friend lived in with perfect ease.

"How can you still remember all these confusing paths after not going here for so long?" Will asked. "And how are you sure that this place where your friend lives hasn't changed?" Cornelius looked at the young blacksmith with a smile.

"It's the same reason why I still remember where I hid that cursed object here. And as to where my friend lives, well it's not really that difficult to find someone like him since he's got no choice but to live on that same spot for years. Unless he's dead, which I highly doubt, I'm sure we'll find him there like always." He explained.

"Speaking of which," AnaMaria began as they continue to walk. "Just who is this friend of yours Cornelius?"

"Oh he's-" Before the old man could continue, he caught sight of a man who was slowly approaching them up ahead. He furrowed his brows in confusion and concentration then, when he saw who it was, let a smile grow wide on his face. "Well, well, well! Speak of the devil!" He cried cheerfully. The other man stopped walking and laughed upon seeing Cornelius walk towards him.

"Aye, devil I am. How long as it been since we last set our eyes on each other, old friend?"

"Long enough for me to almost not recognize you back there. I see you've gotten yourself some new clothes. Nice hat." Cornelius commented on the dark red frock coat that the other man wore. The newcomer took off his hat and bowed, causing the beads on the braids of his hair to clink together.

"I thank ye for your kind compliments mate. And who are these find young men and woman you brought along with you?" He asked when he saw Will, Jones and AnaMaria. Cornelius turned his gaze to the three people and stepped aside as he introduced them.

"This is Will Turner, a young blacksmith who lives in Port Royal. The man beside him is Jones Westley, a thief in the streets of Tortuga. And the lass is AnaMaria, former pirate turned merchant whose ship we borrowed. They are good friends who have come upon this grand adventure we're having in order to save another friend." Cornelius explained. Then he looked at the three and held out his hand to the newcomer. "Will, Jones, Lass, this here is Captain Edward Teague, the Keeper of the Pirate's Code."

* * *

"It is a pleasure and a great honor to meet you Captain." Will said as he held out his hand for the other man to shake. Teague smiled at Will and shook everyone's hands politely. Then he turned his gaze to Cornelius.

"So what brings ye all here in Shipwreck Cove?" He asked. "What be this grand adventure you speak of and what does it have to do with this place?"

"Let me discuss this while we head to your humble abode. " Cornelius offered. When Teague agreed, the whole group began to walk once more with the two oldest men in the lead. "Well mate, do you recall the time when Thomas and I came here around 20 years ago to hide a chest that we told you held cursed treasure?" Cornelius began. When Teague nodded in reply, the old man went on with his story. The story about how it all began was long and tiring just like the time he had told AnaMaria about it. But Cornelius never stopped talking until he had reached the end of the first part of the tale. Teague was courteous enough to stay silent and save his questions for later during this whole telling.

Cornelius was only beginning on the part about Marine coming back to the world of the Pirates when they arrived in one of the largest shipwrecks found on the island. Teague walked across the plank, grabbing a lantern on the way, and opened the doors to let everyone else inside first. A few minutes of looking through the opening of the door made them realize that they were heading below deck, whose space was enlarged and cleared to make it big enough to turn into a comfortable shelter. Will and the others entered and looked around the place in amazement. From the shabby, worn out look on the outside, none of the newcomers expected to find the inside looking much better. Though it was dusty and filled with cobwebs around the dark corners, the inside of the ship was still in tact and sturdy. Teague took out a match from the pockets of his coat and lit up the lantern he held. Then he gestured to the others to move on with him.

The whole group walked through a dark and cold corridor and were led into a part of the stone wall where a tunnel had been dug through. Teague held up the lantern high above his head and led everyone through the cold tunnel walls and into a large equally clammy room. There was a small table to one side of the room, surrounded by a number of wooden chairs. Everyone made their way to them and sat down to take a quick rest while Teague moved throughout the room and lit up torches that hung against the walls. Will was the first one to speak as he looked around the room curiously.

"It must have taken quite some time and a lot of effort to build this city into the way it is now." Will remarked. "It's amazing how you used the wrecks to your own advantages and even created more structures through the walls inside this island." He said as he felt the wall with his hands. Teague followed Will's trail of gaze and gave an offhand shrug.

"You can say that. Although after living in this old and sorry place for many years, it gets a bit boring and unattractive." He said. "Feel free to make yourselves at home. You won't be bothering anyone else here since only I live here. Would you like anything to eat or drink?" He added.

"Not now, thank you." Teague looked towards Jones, AnaMaria and Cornelius who all gave similar declines to the captain. When Teague was sure that no one wanted anything else, he sat down on a chair together with them and took his guitar from one corner of the room. He tuned it slowly and carefully, holding his guitar the way a mother would hold her child. The rest of the group watched him with silence and curiosity then smiled when Teague began playing a random melody he thought of from his guitar. He only played it for a minute, and when he stopped the rest were rendered speechless.

"That's amazing! Where did you learn to play like that?" Jones asked after he recovered from his initial surprise. Teague grinned at him as he set his guitar down and crossed both his arms and legs smugly.

"When you've lived and seen as long and as much as I have, you pick up a few things that you use to spend your idle times." He said. "It's nothing special. I enjoy playing my guitar and do so whenever I don't have anything to do; which is usually all the time. As the Keeper, it is my job to keep the code safe, in tact, and away from grubby hands who wants to use it for their own wants and needs. This has given me less chances of leaving Shipwreck Island. You could say that it's been quite a while since I left this place."

"Don't you ever feel tired of staying here? Why don't you give the position up to someone else instead?" Will asked.

"It's not something to simply give up lad. The Pirate's Code, is what guides all pirates in the world in living their lives. If it goes into the wrong hands, then chaos will surely ensue. I have been and will always be a Keeper, and once my time has neared its end, then that will be the day I find a new keeper. Someone I believe will follow through the tradition that has been passed down since the birth and the spreading of pirates." Teague explained. "I thank ye for your concern, but it's not necessary. I still get some news from the outside world from time to time. I still have an inkling of what's going on out there."

"Hey! It's that bird that I saw entering the island while we were at The Devil's Throat!" Jones cried as he pointed to a bird perched upon a stand and biting the edges of its feathers with its beak. Everyone looked at the direction Jones was pointing at and saw the creature as well. Teague walked towards it and noticed that there was something tied to its leg.

"This is what I meant by knowing what's going on in the outside world. From time to time I have friends outside this island who would send me letters and messages, telling me about everything that's going on around the world. This is how I keep myself informed." The captain said as he untied the rope and gave the bird some food while taking the paper in his other hand. Then he smoothed out the paper and read its message to himself. Everyone waited for Teague to finish and looked at him expectantly. The captain looked at Will then at the paper before looking back at him.

"Interesting..."

"What is?" AnaMaria asked.

"This letter says that I have a message from my son, who has never sent me any letter since we last saw each other. What's even more surprising is that there is another letter, and it's addressed to a Mr. Will Turner." Teauge said, looking at the man he spoke of. "It seems my son has gotten himself into some kind of cursed adventure again...when will the lad ever learn?" Will widened his eyes in surprise as the older man held out another folded piece of paper to him.

"For me? How would your son know my name and how would he even know that I would be here?" The young blacksmith asked as he took the paper from Teague, unfolded it, then looked down on the words and read them in silence. AnaMaria, Jones and Cornelius were leaning towards Will and were jumping with impatience.

"Well? What does it say? Who's it from?" AnaMaria asked. Will looked at the three with even more surprise on his face.

"It's Jack! He says to grab the chest and head to Nassau as soon as possible. Marine has been caught by her clone and they're setting off to go after them so they couldn't meet up with us." He said. After a few seconds, he looked at Teague incredulously. "Jack Sparrow is your son?!"

"Aye lad, he's my only son. Why, couldn't you see the resemblance?" Teague asked. Will looked at the older man from top to bottom very slowly before placing a finger to his chin.

"Now that I think about it...you two do have some similarities, but not enough to really say that you two are alike..."

"And let's hope it stays that way. But from the way my son wrote that letter, and from the fact that he used one of the fastest messenger birds I own to send it to you, I'd say that he wanted you to move as quickly as possible. Why can't he keep himself out of danger once in a while?" Will looked at Cornelius and nodded in agreement while Teague was contemplating to himself.

"He's right Cornelius. You have to lead us to the cursed treasure now so we can leave the island as soon as possible. Jack and the others might need our help."

"All right then. AnaMaria, you go back to the ship and prepare to set sail. The rest of us will follow once we get the chest." Cornelius said. AnaMaria nodded to him and after bidding Teague goodbye, ran out of the room as quickly as she could. Everyone else looked back at Teague who was petting the bird with care. "I'm sorry that we have to leave you in this manner. It seems that our time has been cut even shorter than before. But it was nice to see an old face again after so long. Take care of yourself Eddie." Cornelius said, addressing Teague by the nickname he had made for him. The other man gave a short laugh and smiled at Cornelius.

"Have no fear my friend. I have a feeling that we shall see each other again soon enough. Do you need me to help you bring this chest back or will you handle it on your own?" He asked.

"We'll be fine." Cornelius replied. "But if you want to join us then we'll be happy to receive the company." Both Will and Jones nodded in agreement to what Cornelius said. Teague moved away from the bird and was the first to stand by the doorframe.

"Well what are we waiting for? Let's go get that chest of yours."

* * *

Back on the Black Pearl, there were no signs of movement or activity. Everything was tranquil and calm while they sailed the sea, with the stars and the moon shining brightly from the sky. Most of the crew was fast asleep below deck. But then from the way they had worked extra hard for the past few weeks, it was understandable that they were all dead tired. Even a large earthquake or a strong storm might not wake them up from their slumber. Only a few number of people were awake at that time, and most of them were by the galley. At this time the darkness has covered most of the places on the ship, making it hard to see clearly. Even the lantern they placed at the center of the galley wasn't enough to light up the whole room. It only send four shadowed forms flickering against the walls.

"We really appreciate your effort in making a late night dinner for Jack." Elizabeth told the man who was standing among the pots and frying pans. "He's been working very hard since we left the last island we've been to. And I fear that he's not going to be strong enough to save Marine when we catch up with the clone." The ship's cook poured something onto the plate he prepared and held it out to Gibbs who took it in his hands and placed it on the table everyone surrounded.

"Oh and here's the Captain's daily bottle of rum. That will get his spirits and energy up for sure. I keep it there just for occasions like this." The cook added as he tossed Gibbs a bottle from his cupboards. Then he looked at Elizabeth and showed his yellowish teeth as he smiled at her. "And 'tis no problem lass. It's the least I could do teh help the crew out. I really like that Marine lass an' if doing this means I get teh help in saving her, then I'll do it a thousand times more." Gibbs slapped the man's back in a friendly manner.

"Yer a good man Simon. Now go on and get to sleep. We'll clean up the mess here. You'll need all the energy you can get for tomorrow morning."

"All right then. Shout out if you need anythin' else. I an' the rest of teh crew would be more than happy teh help." He nodded to the group before walking out of the galley and through the dark corridor towards the crew's quarters. He didn't need a lantern since he knew every corner and path inside the ship. Everyone watched Simon leave before looking at the plate of food he had made on the table.

"I'll go get Jack and take his place for a while. Make sure he eats something aside from drinking the rum." Elizabeth and Carrie, who kept silent and said nothing for quite some time, nodded to Gibbs. The old man smiled at the two of them before leaving the galley as well. The two women waited for a few minutes before hearing a set of footsteps heading towards their direction. Jack entered the galley with his shoulders slumped in exhaustion and went to the seat beside Elizabeth with an effort. His eyes lit up cheerfully when he saw the bottle on the table and quickly reached for it. The blond haired woman moved the plate closer to Jack while the man was busy appreciating his drink.

"You should try to eat something too, Jack. You've been steering the helm all day and all night without rest that it's a surprise you're still standing. And don't try to make excuses with me. You have to eat and rest from time to time or you're going to collapse before we get to Marine." Elizabeth told him. Jack grimaced as he placed his bottle on the table, grabbed the fork and pierced a piece of fish on the plate.

"Geez, you could be worse than my mother. And I couldn't remember anything about her except that she was a terrifying woman." But even if he complained, he bit on the fish meat and began to chew. As he ate, he looked at Carrie. "Are you all right love?" At first Carrie didn't hear Jack. It was only when Jack called her attention for the third time did she turn her head towards him.

"Huh? What is it?" Elizabeth placed a hand on top of Carrie's and gave her a concerned look.

"Are you okay? You've been so quiet and distant from everyone lately." Carrie gave a half-hearted smile and nodded.

"Don't worry about me. I'm all right."

"But Marine isn't." Jack suddenly said in between bites of his dinner, surprising both women. "My incredibly intuitive sense of the female mind tells me that even though you and Marine had a fight, that you're still very worried about her." Carrie looked down sadly.

"I kept thinking that if only I was stronger, or skillful in pirating or swordfighting, that maybe there would be a chance that none of this would have happened. Maybe if I wasn't here, Vanessa would still be safe and sound with you." She gripped her hands together tightly, turning her knuckles pale white. "I can't help but feel guilty for always being in the way and always causing problems for her."

"You're not causing problems for anyone!" Elizabeth countered. "Anyone who says so clearly hasn't been on this adventure with you. Even Marine herself had never complained about you once - well except for the time when she left the Black Pearl - but that was different. She was very frustrated and upset and wasn't thinking clearly on things."

"All she wanted was for you to be safe Carrie." Jack added in agreement. "That was why she was working so hard to keep you from becoming a pirate and being unleashed onto the jungle filled with dangerous animals and the like. Being a pirate really isn't all that grand and beautiful lass. She just didn't want you to get hurt." Carrie looked at Jack and smiled a little.

"I'm glad you're in good terms with Vanessa now...I just hope that we make it to her in time so that she and I can forgive each other too." Elizabeth placed a comforting hand on Carrie's shoulder while giving her a smile at the same time.

"Don't worry Carrie. We'll make it there in time. I'm sure Marine wants to be your friend again just as badly as you do." She then turned her gaze to Jack. "How long do we have before we reach Port Royal?" Jack drank the remaining contents of his bottle and peered through the lip with a frown when he had finished it. Then tossing his bottle to the side, he stood up and made his way to the cupboards.

"Well, we've been sailing non-stop since I got Marine's message. Thankfully the winds are moving in our favor. From the speed we're currently making, we'll be there in two more weeks or so." He took another fresh bottle from the cupboard and made his way back to the table where Elizabeth and Carrie were. "Even the clone's ship won't be moving as fast as we are. If we're lucky, we might even reach the town before they do."

"Do you think so?" Carrie asked hopefully. Jack drank from his bottle first before answering the young woman's question.

"Well truthfully I can't say what will happen. The seas are very unpredictable and a storm might suddenly hit us when just a few moments ago it was bright and sunny. No, I don't want to think too much on it else we might jinx ourselves and be in even more trouble than we're in now. We'll just sail as hard as we can and hope for the best." He said as he finished his second bottle of rum.

* * *

The darkness was nerve-wracking, the air suffocating and the amount of space she had made her feel claustrophobic. Marine thought that she had seen the worst of jails in her whole life as a pirate; now she knew that she was wrong. Even Port Royal's jail cells were a luxury compared to the brig of the ship she was currently aboard on. Then again her clone had just stolen this ship from some other pirate who most likely didn't take care of it together with the rest of the ship. There were times when she wondered if the ship was going to fall apart and drown them all to death. But so far it hasn't done anything like that and still continued to sail normally. Sometimes she wished that it really would suddenly fall apart and drown them all to death.

There were no windows or even holes in the brig that she could use to tell her what time of the day it was. All she knew for sure was that she had been there for more than a week already. After the first week had passed she had lost any sense of time that she had. Even the time the food was being brought to her was random. Her stomach suddenly rumbled at the thought of what she was being given to eat. The share that the pirates give her three times a day could barely keep her hunger satisfied for half a day.

Wouldn't it be just better for her to die right now than to suffer more of this torture?

The sound of footsteps going down the stairs reached her ears and brought her back from her thoughts. But she didn't move from her spot against the corner of the cell she was in. She watched as first a silhouetted form of a person stood before her. She squinted and winced at having to look against the sunlight streaming down from above. Then when her eyes adjusted to the brightness a few minutes later, she saw that it was her clone carrying a tray of food with her hands. It was the first time that her clone had been near her after the events back at the island she and Jack had been stranded on.

"You're barely giving me anything to eat. You might as well leave me to die of starvation or kill me right now." Marine muttered as she watched her clone walk closer towards her cell. The clattering sound of the tray being dropped flat to the floor before her cell made Marine wince in pain.

"Don't think you're the only one suffering on this blasted ship. Among all the people aboard, you're the one with the biggest share. Now shut up and eat." Her clone replied. Marine narrowed her eyes at the other.

"Gee, thanks for the special treatment. But I don't need it. Why won't you go to any Port or Island and grab some supplies? You're crazy if you think killing everyone on this ship is going to take you wherever you're planning to go to faster." Her clone smiled manically and with her face thin and exhausted, it looked even more psychopathic.

"Ahaha do you think I don't know what you're up to? You're trying to slow me down; keep me from getting to Port Royal faster."

"Slow you down? Why? Is someone coming after us?" Marine asked. "Unless you've forgotten, Sparrow betrayed me. Elizabeth and Carrie combined wouldn't convince him to go and get me back. And even if the other group finds out that I've been taken, they wouldn't make it in time to save me even if they sailed all day and all night with a good wind behind them. So what's with all this rush? Could it be that you have been lying to me all this time?" The clone froze for one second then stared long and hard at Marine. Realization dawned on her quickly, making her grit her teeth in anger.

"So...you've realized it huh?" Marine smiled back at her clone with a smugness that irritated the other woman.

"Known it long before you took me to this wreck you call a ship. Known it even while you were giving me crap about how Jack betrayed me and all that. I'm a great actress aren't I? Or is it just that you're a really bad liar?" The clone clenched her hands into tight fists, making her knuckles turn white, though she still spoke in a calm tone.

"You've given the man some really harsh blows. You convinced even me that you were furious with him." Marine placed her hands behind her back and slouched against the wall in a show of relaxation.

"I guess you can say that it was all that pent-up anger on him I had before. But don't worry. I made sure to keep him alive after all that. Wouldn't want him to die on me now would we?" The clone stepped closer and gripped the steel bars of Marine's cell. The smile she had on her face was wide and frighteningly forced as she spoke.

"You may think you've won, but the battle isn't over yet. No matter how fast the Black Pearl is, he won't catch up to us in time to save your sorry ass." She hissed. Marine put a finger to her chin and tilted her head diagonally upwards, pretending to be in deep thought.

"I don't know...I think he can reach us in time. He can be pretty persuasive when he wants to be. You should know this just as well as I do right? " Having had enough, the clone turned around and began to walk away from the brig. But not before walking towards the tray and kicking it as hard as she could. Marine said nothing as she watched the other woman walk away and felt her grin grow wider with every second that passed by.

When the crew members of the ship saw their captain go up from the brig with a murderous look on her face, they immediately turned their gazes away and tried to avoid the woman's path as much as they could. They have seen what she was capable off at the slightest irritation and didn't want to suffer her wrath. Maurice was standing to one side of the ship and was calmly staring into the clear sea green water when he sensed a presence behind him and turned around. He had known that she went to the brig to see to the prisoner, and could make a guess of what had happened down below.

"What has she said to make you look like you want to stab someone to death right now?" He asked. The clone moved beside him before the rails and pressed her hands on it. She leaned there for a few moments and took deep breaths before turning her gaze to Maurice.

"She knew that I lied to her about Jack Sparrow betraying her. Then she pissed me off by rubbing that stupid fact in my face." Maurice chuckled, earning himself a dangerous, angry glare from his companion. He raised both of his hands in the air with a smile.

"No, don't take this the wrong way lass. I was just laughing because she reminded me so much of her father. A very stubborn, cheerful man who could easily annoy others with his wit and his words. It's unfortunate that she took more after her father instead of her gentle, timid mother." The clone narrowed her eyes as she pointed her sword at him.

"Her parents are MY parents Maurice! Unless you've forgotten all about it, she and I are part of the same soul. The same being. Don't ever forget that." She snapped. Maurice nodded.

"Yes...you have your father's temper too. I can see that." He replied calmly. "But venting your anger on me and the rest of the crew is not going to change the fact that you and the other are still two halves of a whole. You must head to Port Royal as quickly as you could. That pirate will no doubt be coming after you even as we speak. Worse, his ship is known to be the fastest one in the Caribbean Seas. He will catch up to us sooner than we hope for."

"Don't you worry your little head about that." Marine's clone spoke as she straightened up and turned around so her back was leaning against the rails. "I've got a plan that will surely throw Sparrow and the rest of his crew off by surprise. Very soon now, that man is going to regret his decision to try and save Marine."


	28. The Pirate's Side

_**"It is better to choose the lesser among two evils." - James Norrington**_

**Chapter 28 - The Pirate's Side**

"We're here! We're finally here!" Carrie shouted at the top of her lungs as she made her way down from the crow's nest as quickly as she could. Elizabeth and Norrington walked towards Carrie and looked beyond the sea at the small form of an island that was growing larger as they moved further ahead. Elizabeth couldn't help but feel homesick and worried for her father as she neared her homeland. Norrington was just as agitated about being back as the young blond haired woman was. Carrie turned her head to Jack and saw him still holding the helm.

"Raise the sails! We're going to bring her in to our little hiding place. Then we'll head to the land and get back at that other pirate ship." He shouted. Everyone working on the main deck raised their fists in the air with vigor and energy.

"AYE AYE CAPTAIN!" He saw his first mate, Carrie, Elizabeth and Norrington headed up the stairs and passed the helm to Cotton then met up with the group halfway down the stairs.

"Gibbs, I leave you, Cotton, and two others in charge of the Pearl while I take the rest with me ashore. I don't know what that woman has planned for us and I don't know how long this fight is going to take so I want you to be careful and give us a signal if something comes up. Tell the crew to prepare all of the rowboats we have once we've reached the cave and to prepare themselves for battle." Jack said. Gibbs nodded in silence and walked away to do as Jack ordered while the rest of the group remained. Jack looked at each of them and frowned slightly. "I suppose you're all going to ask me to take you with me to town even though you're all wanted for collaborating with a pirate."

"Please Jack." Elizabeth begged. "I'm worried about my father. I want to see him and let him know that I'm all right."

"Do you think I'm going to stand here and do nothing while you go into danger to save Vanessa?" Carrie asked rhetorically. "I might not be a good fighter, but I have enough skills to defend myself from anyone who comes at me. You yourself made sure that I would be capable of that. Let me go with you!"

"I'll make sure that both Miss Swann and Miss Lockheart will not be harmed while we're in town." Norrington added. "Although it pains me to work together with you Sparrow, I still have enough sense in me to know whose side I should be in at the moment." Jack looked at each one of them slowly and consideringly before heaving a heavy sigh of resignment.

"Fine. You can all come along." Elizabeth and Carrie looked at each other and smiled in relief. Jack on the other hand pointed a warning finger at Norrington. "Mark my words Norrington. Betray us and I'll personally kill you myself." He said. Norrington gave Jack a sardonic smile.

"As you wish." Jack stared at the former Commodore for a long moment before nodding to himself and walking towards the bow, looking ahead at the island as they made their way to the small hidden cave located right next Port Royal. Carrie took the sword she had hung on her belt and unsheathed it to see the sharp blade glint against the sunlight. She saw herself in the reflection, and imagined a smiling Marine staring at her. With a soft click, she sheathed it back and gripped it tightly in her hands. While Elizabeth was fixing her own weapon attached to her belt, she saw what Carrie did and placed a comforting hand on her shoulder.

"Don't worry, I'm sure everything will turn out all right in the end."

"I hope so." Carrie muttered with less enthusiasm as Elizabeth had expected. Norrington felt uncomfortable being in the middle of their intense moment and excused himself silently, walking ahead to stand beside Jack Sparrow. Jack turned his head to face the other man in consideration then reverted his attention ahead of him. Neither of them said a word at first, until Norrington opened his mouth.

"Just so you know Sparrow, I'm only doing this for the safety of the two ladies on this ship. It has nothing whatsoever to do with helping you or the other pirate in your problem."

"Doesn't matter how many times you deny it. Helping Lizzie and Carrie means helping me and Marine. You should stop trying to deny the fact that you also care about me and Marine and that you want to help us out in our little predicament. It's okay. I'll be very flattered by it and I might even consider giving you a permanent spot in my crew of able-bodied seamen. We could use a pansy like you for entertainment after all." Jack said with a teasing grin. Norrington gritted his teeth and clenched his hands into fists, fighting hard not to attack Jack. But before he could say or do anything, Jack went on. "Take care of Elizabeth and Carrie. Make sure that they are not to be harmed no matter what happens." He said. Norrington narrowed his eyes at Jack.

"Why are you saying this all of a sudden? I do not care whether I have to listen to you as the captain of this ship or not, I don't need you to tell me what I must do as a gentleman and as a part of the Royal Navy." Jack gave the former Commodore a smile that irritated him before walking away.

"Just wanted to make sure that you will follow my orders mate. Now go on and do your share of the work. You are still part prisoner and part of my crew whether you like it or not." Norrington had no time to reply or get back at what Jack said as he watched him leave. In the end he gave a soft and weary sigh and shook his head from side to side. Sometimes he wondered how he ever came to, as much as he hated to admit it, admire the pirate.

The ship arrived at its stop within minutes with the wind still blowing them towards their destination. Jack ordered for the anchor to be released and walked towards the rowboats as the other pirates began preparing them for the trip ashore. He stood before the group with his hands to his back and his chest out like a marine soldier would have done in preparation for battle.

"Men! I want you all to be on your best behavior while we're ashore. We're not here to lounge about and enjoy ourselves. We're here to get back one of our crewmembers, Marine for those of you who don't know, from her evil clone. And besides, we wouldn't want poor little Norry to get upset with us for making a terrible disturbance in his lovely town would we? After all, he still hopes to get back his position as a Commodore and let us not forget the large, poofy white wig that his head surely misses with a passion." This got him a few chuckles and snickers from the crew. Norrington narrowed his eyes at Jack warningly, which was returned by the pirate with an innocent smile. A few seconds later Jack coughed and got back the attention of his men. This time he spoke in a grave and serious voice.

"Enough fun and games. This is a very serious matter we're heading into. If we make one small mistake, Marine's life will be in peril. I want everyone to keep a sharp eye for anything suspicious and to always be on guard no matter what happens. And don't ever forget that little reminder I mentioned when we were still on the Pearl. Is that clear?"

"Aye aye captain!" The crew cheered raucously. Jack smiled, satisfied with his crew's reaction, and clapped his hands before rubbing them together eagerly.

"Well then, everyone coming with me should get into one of the rowboats and follow my lead." He turned his gaze to Elizabeth, Carrie and Norrington while the rest of his men went back to work. "You're all going to go into the same boat as I am. Then once we reach shore we'll temporarily part ways. You three head to Lizzie's house and hide there while we look for any sign of Marine. I'll call for you when we find her." He said. "Any questions? Good." Jack hopped into the rowboat and motioned for them to come in impatiently. The three people looked at each other for a moment before following Jack's actions and sitting down together in the boat. Gibbs and the other three pirates helped bring the boat down gently but as quickly as they could. Once it landed on the surface of the water, Jack gave Norrington the oars and ordered him to row. They were the first to head towards the island with the rest of the crew following not far behind.

Jack took out his looking glass and peered through the small hole in the direction of the town. He was more specifically looking for any sign of Marine's clone or the other pirates he recalled from the uninhabited island he had been on. But after going through every ship that had docked on port, he could find no sign of any of them. He brought down the instrument then turned his gaze to the others with him.

"Well? Did you see any sign of Marine or her clone?" Carrie asked.

"Can't find any clues as to their whereabouts. Worst case is they've already taken Marine's soul from her and left Port Royal. There's also the possibility that we arrived ahead of them; if we're really lucky. I think we should..." Jack paused in mid-sentence as something in his mind nagged at him. Carrie, Elizabeth and Norrington looked at him strangely and expectantly.

"Jack? Is there something wrong? What is it?" Elizabeth asked. Jack ignored her question as he brought up the looking glass once more and peered towards the dock intently. Jack did this for 10 minutes without saying or doing anything at all which irked the other woman a bit.

"Jack!"

"There's something odd about the town..." Jack muttered as he handed the looking glass to Elizabeth. "I can't put my finger on it, but it's giving me a bad feeling." The young woman took it and looked into the glass as well. But after a moment she handed it back to Jack with a confused look on her face.

"I can't find anything wrong about it. In fact, it's quite peaceful and calm." Carrie suddenly took the looking glass from Jack and took a look at the town as well. After a while, she looked at Jack strangely.

"Yeah Jack. There's nothing wrong about it. It's just like any other port, town, island or village anyone would land on." Jack shook his head stubbornly.

"There's just something not right about it...it's there at the edge of my mind but I can't seem to grasp it. It's...it's...too quiet. Too peaceful. Too normal. Too, I don't know. Too...too..."

"Empty." Norrington answered as they neared the dock of Port Royal. "The dock should be brimming with people and activity at this time of the day. But there's barely anyone in sight now." Jack pointed at Norrington with a large smile.

"That's it! It's too empty! Just the word I was thinking of." When Elizabeth and Carrie looked back at the dock, they realized that what Jack and Norrington said were true. There was only a number of people lounging about the docks. There was no one bringing in fish into the market. No men carrying crates or luggages to and from their ships. Not even a Royal Navy could be seen standing at the top of Fort Charles nearby.

"But why is the dock empty at this time of the day?" Elizabeth asked. "Did something bad happen to the town while we were away?" She wondered worriedly. "What about father? What's happened to him?"

"Calm down Elizabeth. We can't jump into conclusions without knowing the reason." Jack said. "But the lack of a Royal Navy does disturb me..." He turned his head to Norrington who was still rowing the boat towards shore. "You're the Commodore. What reason would there be for everyone to disappear or to be out of sight?"

"There are many possibilities for everyone to be missing." Norrington grunted. "But the one that's hovering in my mind presently would be a hanging."

"I wonder who's the poor, unlucky lad that's being hanged." Jack muttered to himself. "Well whoever it is, it's not our problem and should therefore be put away from our minds. The issue we're concerned with now is finding Marine and her clone."

"How are we going to find two people in this large town?" Elizabeth asked.

"I'm going to go ask around together with my men. Someone in this town's bound to have seen them at least once. You three on the other hand are going to go to Governor Swann's mansion and wait for us. I won't hear any contradictions from any of you; especially you." Jack said as he gave a knowing look in Carrie's direction. "Bringing you all along is risky enough. We don't need the Royal Navy to catch sight of you and bring us more trouble." Carrie frowned at Jack but after a second sighed and nodded concededly. Jack gave her a small smile as he patted her shoulder.

"Cheer up lass. I'll find her."

Jack was the very first one to step on the docks of Port Royal, followed by Elizabeth and the others in the same boat he was in. While waiting for the rest of Jack's crew to arrive, they looked around the docks curiously and warily.

"It feels like we've landed in a ghost town." Carrie said as she looked around. She and Elizabeth looked at each other worriedly then held hands as a means of comforting the other. Norrington hovered his hand to the hilt of his sword which was strapped to his belt while his eyes slowly measured the area. Jack was the only person who didn't seem worried or intimidated by the strangeness of the town. He turned around and watched as his men tied their boats to the dock and stood behind him with swords already in hand. It took a few more minutes before the whole crew was out of the rowboats, waiting for Jack's further commands.

"Everyone split up and ask around for any sign of Marine or her clone. Then report to me as soon as you find some valuable information. I should also stress that you use extra caution while doing this. The Royal Navy's really mad at us now and coming back here after our previous visit isn't going to bode well for them."

"How right you are Mr. Sparrow." A voice said out of nowhere. Everyone immediately looked around for the source of the voice while raising their swords in preparation for an attack. They were surprised to find that a large number of men had surrounded them and had their rifles pointed at them. Jack raised his hand in the air as a signal to everyone in his crew to hold any attack and watched a man pass through between two of the armed guards with his hands to his back. Jack's lips twitched into a frown when he recognized the man as the man who had replaced Norrington as Commodore. "Good morning Mr. Sparrow. We've been expecting you." He said. The pirate raised a finger at the man and had only one thing to say.

"That's Captain Jack Sparrow, mate."

* * *

Carrie sat on the ground with her arms wrapped around her legs which were tucked against her chest. She was sitting at one of the corners of the cell they had all been placed in an hour ago. She pressed her head to her knee and closed her eyes as she listened to the others speak to each other. Her thoughts were filled with worry for Marine as she wondered what had happened to her best friend and she couldn't think about anything else aside from it. It was only when she felt someone shake her lightly that she snapped out of her reverie and looked up at the others.

"What is it?" The first person she saw, the one who had touched her, was Elizabeth. She looked at Carrie worriedly as she sat down beside her.

"Are you all right? You've been keeping to yourself ever since we arrived here. You haven't said anything to anyone or moved from that spot. I was starting to get worried." She said. Carrie gave her a small smile and nodded in reply.

"Don't worry about me. I'm fine. Just...tired." She looked beyond Elizabeth and watched Jack as he stretched out his arms through the steel bars as far as he could. Norrington kept on sighing and shaking his head in disbelief as he sat among the rest inside the cell. The rest of the crew had been divided into a number of groups and were placed in separate cells. They were currently sitting on the ground, playing simple games and the like as if they weren't being held prisoners. "Jack...what are we going to do?" She asked. "We still have no idea what's happened to Marine and now we're all going to be executed." Jack stopped stretching as he turned his attention to the young woman with a grin on his face.

"Relax love, you're with Captain Jack Sparrow. I'll get us out of here soon."

"Just like the way you escaped the gallows last time you were here?" Norrington asked sarcastically. "That was some fine strategy you thought of by the way."

"Why thank you. I couldn't have done it without your help Norry." Elizabeth interrupted the two of them before they could start their argument.

"That's enough out of the two of you! If you're not going to say anything productive then just sit still and keep quiet." Norrington said nothing as he glared at Jack angrily. The pirate stuck his tongue out at the former Commodore in return. Elizabeth gave a heavy sigh then decided to ignore them and let them be. At least they were being silent.

"Why is this happening now?" Carrie asked to no one in particular. "Why now when we're in a really big rush? It's not fair!"

"I think it's the fact that we were in a 'big rush' that we got caught." Jack replied as he pulled back his arm and leaned against the bars. "This has that clone's name written all over it. It's most likely that she's given word to the Navy that we would be on our way here. That's why they were waiting for us at the docks when we arrived." He pressed a hand to his forehead and shut his eyes tight. "I should have been more careful. I was too eager to save Marine that I never bothered to think of what that other woman had planned for us."

"It's not your fault Jack. We'll figure something out. I'm sure of it."

"Do you mind 'figuring something out' soon? The Royal Navy isn't going to wait for us that long." Norrington muttered, earning a glare from the three other people in the cell with him. At that moment, they all heard the sound of footsteps coming down from above. Jack immediately moved away from the bars and turned around to find three people making their way towards him. Elizabeth widened her eyes as she rushed to the bars and gripped them tightly.

"Father!"

"Elizabeth! I'm so glad that you're all right." Governor Swann said in a soft whisper as he went up to their cell and held his daughter's hand. "I was so worried that something had happened to you. Where is William?" He asked.

"He's in another ship together with our other friends. We were attacked while we were docked on a town so we got separated. But he will be all right." She assured. "What are you doing here father? And why are they standing behind you?" At her question, all eyes turned to the two Royal Navy soldiers who were standing behind Governor Swann a bit stiffly. Norrington raised an eyebrow at the two of them.

"Murtogg? Mullroy? What is the meaning of this? What are you two doing here?"

"Uh...well sir, me and Mullroy here...we're going to help you escape." Murtogg said. "We don't believe that you would willingly become part of his crew. We think that you were just forced to assist them in their piracy...isn't that right sir?" One side of Jack's lips curled in amusement as he watched the two guards look at Norrington with hope. He moved towards Norrington and wrapped an arm around him.

"Me and ol' Norry here are the best of buds! There's no one in the world whom I could think of being a better crewmate than him." Norrington glared at Jack as he jerked his hand away from him. Murtogg and Mullroy on the other hand looked devastated at hearing what Jack said.

"Is this true sir? Have you truly become one of them?" Mullroy asked. Norrington slapped Jack's hand when he was about to put it around him again before looking at the two Royal Navy guards.

"I'd rather stick myself through a spear than become a pirate. But you must learn that sometimes, it is better to choose the lesser among two evils."

"Shouldn't it be the greater among two evils since, you are choosing to side with the Captain Jack Sparrow." The pirate spoke up. "And certainly, no evil is greater than myself!" Governor Swann saw that they were going to fight and bicker with each other again so he took out a ring of keys and inserted one into the keyhole to catch their attentions. With a twist and a turn, the cell was unlocked and the door was opened. Jack was the first one to go out and the first thing he did was stretch his limbs. After that he made his way to where the guards kept all of their weapons and began taking his swords and pistols out. Carrie followed as she stood in front of Jack and held his shoulders, shaking them slightly.

"We have to find Marine and her clone now before it's too late!"

"Easy love, there's no need to be in a rush." He said as he strapped his weapons to his belt. Afterwards he looked at the keys in Governor Swann's hand in consideration then turned his head to the rest of his crew who were still behind bars. "I want all of you to stay here while we go out and look for Marine. They won't do anything to you so you need not fret; well, not until they kill me first that is. Don't worry mates. I'll be back before you know it."

"Back behind bars together with the rest of us." One of the men muttered. Jack heard this and gave the man who had spoken a warning look. Then he looked at the rest of the crew.

"Anyone else who wants to receive their punishments once we make it back to the Pearl?" The one who had spoken widened his eyes and groaned while the rest of the men quickly shook their heads in reply to Jack's question. Once Jack was satisfied, he turned his gaze to Governor Swann and pressed his palms together. "You wouldn't mind if we sought refuge in your mansion do you Governor? Do it for your kind and lovely daughter and for the man who was responsible in making her happy together with the wh- William." Governor Swann looked from Norrington, to Carrie then to his daughter before heaving a small but heavy sigh and nodding his head at Jack hesitantly.

"Very well. Hurry and follow me. There's not much time left before they find out that you've been freed."

* * *

Governor Swann rushed about the living room, closing windows and drawing all of the curtains shut. The whole room grew dim, and everyone could barely see anything but dark shadows. As soon as they entered the mansion, Elizabeth's father ordered all of the maids to stay away from the sitting room and to go on with their work as if there was nothing wrong. Only the butler, who had come in bearing a tray with cups of tea for everyone, saw the refugees in hiding. He immediately left the room, filling it up with a slightly awkward silence. Carrie felt embarrassed to speak up about their problem and simply drank her tea in silence. Jack and Norrington didn't drink but looked at the windows as if waiting for someone to barge in and attack them by surprise. Elizabeth and Governor Swann took sips from their cups then looked at each other before facing the rest once more.

"Well then Jack...now that you have us all hiding in my family's mansion, what do you intend to do next?" Elizabeth asked. Jack's attention was brought back and he looked at Elizabeth with a grin.

"Why, Norry and I will go about the streets in search of Marine while you and Carrie stay here and wait for us." Carrie placed her tea on the table with a loud clink then sharply stood up from the couch she was sitting on to glare at Jack.

"And why are Elizabeth and I not coming? We'll have better chances of finding Vanessa if we all search the town." She argued. Elizabeth looked at Jack and nodded in agreement to what Carrie said.

"I must agree with the pirate ladies." Governor Swann spoke up. "It's too dangerous for two women such as yourselves to go about town when the Royal Navy is searching for you." Carrie turned around to face Governor Swann.

"And what do you mean by that? Two women such as ourselves? Do you think Elizabeth and I are the type of petite and timid women who would do nothing but eat, sleep and gossip like the rest of the women during this century? If Vanessa was here, you wouldn't say anything to keep her from going into danger to help out. In fact, you would even ask for her help! Don't give me that look Jack, admit it! You think Elizabeth and I couldn't take care of ourselves so you think that we should stay inside a house and hide like little mice being chased after by a cat. Well I'm not going to stand for it. I'm going out there to save my best friend whether you like it or not." The three men looked at each other then sighed softly all together. Jack held up his hands to Governor Swann and Norrington before they could object more then turned his gaze to Elizabeth and Carrie.

"Do you two promise that you will not cause us more problems? That even if you do fall into some trouble you wouldn't ask us for help, unless we already found Marine by that time and are fully capable of saving your lives of course. And do you promise that you will run and hide somewhere safe when things become too dangerous for the two of you no matter how much you want to stay and help?" Both Elizabeth and Carrie nodded their heads with very determined expressions on their faces.

"Yes!" Jack gave another sigh and raised his hands to the air.

"Then I guess you're all free to come and join us in our search. As long as you keep your promises, I have nothing against your coming."

"What's in your head Sparrow? You can't let the women throw themselves into danger!" Norrington argued. Jack narrowed his eyes at Norrington then used his thumb to point to the two women.

"It's better to let them accompany us so we would know where they are rather than force them to stay here, knowing that they would go off on their own without us knowing anything about it. If you have something against letting them come then discuss it with them, not me." He said. Norrington glanced at the two women, who were giving him dagger glares, and sighed in resignment.

"Fine. They can come with us." Jack grinned then rubbed his hands together.

"Now that that's settled, we move on to our next agenda. Where do we start looking for Marine first."

"We could start at the docks and find out which ship they were using." Carrie suggested. "From there we can get information from the crew on where they are."

"I doubt that they would tell the crew where they were going." Jack replied. "It's more likely that when we get there we'd be given nothing about their whereabouts and we'd only be bringing attention to ourselves by letting them know that we've arrived in Port Royal."

"Then do we each go into different directions to look for her?" Elizabeth asked. Jack shook his head at this.

"Marine is being held together with her clone. There's no telling who else the clone brought along with her. If one of us found them, we'd be in a very big disadvantage." He explained. "No. We have to catch them by surprise by being a step ahead of them."

"Now that I think about it..." Norrington began. Everyone turned their heads in the former Commodore's direction as he went on. "We would probably find the pirate and her clone quicker if we went to the very thing they're after. If my assumption is correct, they would probably still be here looking for it. After all, taking it from Fort Charles won't be easy with only her and a few number of her men with her against thousands of Royal Navy guards. And the place they're targeting is highly secured; not an easy place to infiltrate."

"You know where the Cursed Coin is?" Carrie asked incredulously. Norrington smirked at them as he crossed his arms smugly.

"Why of course. It's most likely in the very place where they keep all of a prisoner's most valuable belongings. In the Commodore's office." Jack couldn't help but grin and jab Norrington's side lightly with his elbow.

"Ahhh so now out comes the true intentions of all the Commodores assigned here. So that's why you're keen on getting your position back. You just want to grab all of a prisoner's valuable and expensive belongings to use them for your own selfish reasons!" Norrington glared at Jack.

"I do not take things that don't belong to me pirate! That's the type of thing that you would do."

"That's enough out of you two!" Elizabeth said, stepping between Jack and Norrington to interrupt their squabble. "If you're going to go on bickering against each other then do it some other time in some other place. We have to hurry and get ahead of Marine and her clone before it's too late." Jack nodded as he stepped back from Norrington.

"Right right, of course. My apologies love. But you need not worry for I have a plan that will surely bring back Marine into safe hands."

"I highly doubt it." Norrington muttered under his breath. Jack glared at Norrington, who glared back at him. Elizabeth covered her face with one hand and gave a long and frustrated sigh.

* * *

An hour later, a large squad of Royal Navy guards made their way to the Governor's Mansion. Each one held a rifle in hand as they surrounded the house to make sure no one would escape. The new Commodore stepped up to the door first and rapped it lightly with his knuckles. A few minutes later the butler opened it and moved aside to let him enter. Governor Swann was sitting on one of the chairs in the sitting room, sipping a cup of tea he held in his hand.

"Good morning Governor. I apologize for this sudden intrusion but I must request your permission to search the house." Governor Swann looked surprised as he placed his cup on the table and stood up from the chair.

"Goodness gracious! What is the matter Commodore?"

"The pirates we have captured a few hours ago have escaped prison. We believe that because one of the prisoners was your daughter Miss Elizabeth Swann, it is possible that they could be hiding here in your mansion."

"Oh my. Well if you must then I will allow it. But please tell your guards to avoid breaking anything in the house. There are a lot of previous, valuable items that has been given to me by many of my friends." Governor Swann said.

"Of course sir...may I inquire as to who visited you?" The Commodore asked as he gestured to the other teacups that were scattered about the table. Governor Swann gave it a quick glance before looking back at the other man.

"A few of my friends who have arrived here from England have decided to visit me. They just left a few minutes ago so I haven't asked my butler to clean up." Governor Swann explained. The Commodore nodded as he gave a signal to one of his men. Within minutes the whole house was filled with Royal Navy guards who were searching every nook and cranny for any sign of the pirates. One of those guards walked up to the new Commodore and greeted him with a salute before speaking.

"Sir after searching the whole house we have found no sign of the pirates." The Commodore nodded to him.

"Very well. Tell the others to continue looking for them in town. They cannot run away that far. We shall find them sooner or later." He turned his attention to Governor Swann then. "Once again I apologize for the sudden intrusion. May you have a good day Governor." With a curt nod, the Commodore turned around and began walking towards the door. The rest of the Royal Navy guards followed after, making a very noisy departure. Governor Swann stood where he was and waited for things to settle down and fall silent again before collapsing onto the chair he had sat on earlier and heaving a sigh of relief.


	29. Jack's Plan

_**"I must admit that I underestimated you Sparrow. Even though I already had an idea of what you were capable of, I didn't expect you to predict and counter my moves with your own. I was wrong to think so." - Marine's clone**_

**Chapter 29 - Jack's Plan**

With nothing else to do, Jack's crew played small games with each other and counted the hours they've been stuck in their cells after their Captain's escape. During the seventh hour, they heard footsteps headed their way and stopped whatever they were doing to look. They saw Marine coming down the stairs and breathing heavily as if she had run for a long time. Those in the cells who recognized her went up to the bars in a rush.

"Marine!"

"It's the lass!"

"Get us out of here!"

"Where's the captain?" Marine stopped at the bottom of the stairs, placing her hands on her knees and taking slow and deep breaths. Then she gave them all a small smile as she held up her arms in front of her.

"Whoah calm down boys. I'm all right and I'm still alive just so you know. Jack saved me from my clone but now he's having a bit of trouble being chased around by the guards. He told me to free all of you and to tell you that you're all ordered to make as much of a ruckus as possible. You all have to create a distraction so that we can get to the Pearl and escape. Are you guys ready?" After her explanation, a chorus of _'Aye!'s'_ came from the crew. Marine smiled and took a ring of keys hanging against the wall. She then began to unlock every cell that the pirate crew was locked into and watched them all run up the stairs.

She waited for a while, until everyone was gone and the dungeons fell back into silence. When they did she heaved a sigh of relief and went back up the stairs herself. She passed through the two guards she had knocked out previously and walked towards a pile of crates left by the side of the fortress. She stood before it with her arms crossed over her chest.

"You can come out now. The coast is clear." At her words, two figures popped out from among the crates. The first one was Maurice wearing his long, tattered, faded brown cloak. He held one end of a rope in his hand, which was wrapped tightly around the body of the second person. The other one was covered from head to toe in a very long cloak, keeping anyone from seeing who it was. Marine walked up to the second person and reached out to the cloak. She pulled it slightly open, revealing a face exactly the same as hers bearing a very angry expression. A gag was wrapped around her mouth and kept her from making any form of word.

"Don't worry. It will soon be over for you." Marine spoke in a soft voice. The sides of her lip curled and revealed a wide, maniac grin. The other Marine struggled for a moment, twisting from right to left fiercely, until finally she gave up and slumped her shoulders wearily. Even with the gag in her mouth, she closed her eyes shut, gritted her teeth as much as she could and clenched her hands into fists as hard as she could. Tears were struggling to fall down but she forced them in, preferring to die than to let the two people with her see her cry. Marine's clone looked up at Maurice and made a beckoning gesture.

"The imbeciles are off creating havoc. That will give us time to get into the fortress with less guards on standby. Don't make any sound and stay behind me. Let's go." She said. She took one last glance at her clone before walking ahead towards a large building. Maurice closed his eyes and sighed then turned his gaze to the tied up Marine and tugged the rope towards him. Marine narrowed his eyes at Maurice but moved to the direction he was tugging resignedly.

They followed Marine's clone through the short and empty path to the Marine Headquarters. As Marine's clone expected, there were less guards nearby. They easily managed to slip past those that were there and quietly made their way inside the building towards where the Commodore's Office was. As Marine was led through the corridors, memories of the past came to her. She remembered the time when she was caught by the Royal Navy and imprisoned in the dungeons. During that time she had with her a very priceless crystal gem she had taken in one of her adventures. Everything she owned was taken away from her; the gem as well. She wanted to get it back so she had dug up as much information on Fort Charles as she could. And it was with this information that they were going through the building with ease. It irritated her to know that her clone was using this information against her.

How ironic that she now wished she never knew or found out about the layout of Fort Charles.

Her heart subconsciously thumped faster and harder, sensing its nearing end. When Marine's attention was brought back to the present, she realized that they were nearing the Commodore's Office. Dread and fright suddenly held her to her spot and halted their trek through the corridor. When Maurice and her clone noticed this, they turned their gazes to her. Marine's clone stepped closer to her and had on the same maniac grin as before.

"Aw, is the big and brave pirate suddenly afraid of going into the Commodore's office? I thought pirates were better than that." She mocked. Marine's fear subsided for a moment as she glared at her clone in anger. The clone grabbed the end of the rope from Maurice and began pulling as hard as she could. The first tug caught Marine off guard and almost sent her falling to the floor. But Marine managed to catch her balance at the last minute and kept herself from tripping. While she stood up and recovered, Marine's clone paid no attention to her struggle and dragged her the rest of the way to the door. As they were walking, Marine's eyes caught sight of a ceramic vase ahead of them perched on a thin stand. Before Maurice or her clone could react, she ran as fast as she could towards it and knocked it over as hard as she could with her body. The crash was loud and deafening in the silence of the corridor. But not as loud as when Marine's clone jumped on top of Marine's fallen self and grabbed the collar of her vest to pull her up to shout at her.

"If I didn't need your body fresh and alive for the morphing to succeed I would break every bit of bone in your body then slice it up into tiny little pieces slowly and painfully. I'll enjoy hearing you scream your lungs out then take out your eyes, lips, nose and ears just for the fun of it." She growled. "You think this is going to keep us from entering that office and getting the cursed gold coin? Well think again!" She dropped Marine to the ground, causing the other to knock her head and groan in pain, then stood up and began to drag her towards the door without letting her stand up. Marine winced and grunted as she felt her face and body rub against the floor in pain. During this whole time Maurice did nothing and simply moved when Marine's clone did.

A few more minutes passed by with the group slowly making their way to the Commodore's office. Since Marine was being dragged on the ground without getting any chance to stand up, they were greatly slowed down. Marine's clone was furious, but felt that the pain she was making Marine feel was enough to make up for it. They eventually reached large double doors at the end of the long hallway and stopped before it. Marine's clone passed the rope back to Maurice and forced Marine to stand up on her feet, despite the pain that was running up through her whole body.

"It's over for you. There's no point in trying to struggle or fight against me. Just give up and let me take your half of the soul." She said. Marine couldn't speak with the gag in her mouth but her face and her eyes radiated anger and fury for her clone. "Maurice, you stand behind her and make sure she doesn't try to run away again."

Marine's clone twisted the doorknob and pushed it open as she entered the dark and silent room. As she had guessed, the Commodore was nowhere in his room. The place was empty save for the papers and objects lying about. He was probably out in the streets, looking for Jack and trying to stop the chaos that his crew was beginning to create. Then all of a sudden, she realized that something was very wrong with the situation at hand. She froze underneath the door frame and narrowed her eyes at nothing in particular. All the while, her brain was whizzing rapidly in motion.

"That's odd...I can't hear any sounds of chaos or confusion outside. We should be hearing some screaming and fighting right about now." She said as she turned her curious and questioning gaze towards Maurice who said nothing in reply.

_And it's impossible for the room to be this naturally dark...it's only around 4._

Her eyes settled on Marine, who had an intense expression of surprise on her face. She immediately turned around, grabbing her pistol from the holster as she did, and aimed her gun in front of her where a dark form held up his hands in defense.

"Now now love, you shouldn't point that thing around wherever you want. You might kill someone with it." Marine's clone growled softly to herself as Jack Sparrow gave her his trademark grin with his gold teeth reflecting the light coming from the hallway.

* * *

"What the hell are you doing here?! How did you get here before us?!" Marine's clone cried in anger and frustration. Her irritation grew as she watched Jack's smug grin become wider. He casually sat down on the desk with his legs crossed and played with the quill he picked up beside a stack of papers.

"Old Norry pointed out a secret passage that only Commdore's know of." Jack explained. "Though unfortunately, I have a feeling that it won't be usable after this adventure's over. You're also probably wondering why my crew hasn't created the havoc and riot you were waiting for so eagerly." He added. Marine's clone clenched her hands into fists and gritted her teeth. Jack took this as a sign to go on.

"Well, right before we escaped the dungeons, I told my men the way to distinguish the difference between the two Marines. Of course, the real Marine would be the one standing together with me in the same room. I would make sure of that. So when you came to them a while ago and released them from their cells, they immediately knew that you were not the Marine who's on my side. As you can already tell, this means that they would not be following your orders but instead followed mine. That was when we found out that you were about to go get the cursed coin so we decided to meet up with you to say hi." The clone's head hung down, her hair shading her eyes and the expression that was on her face.

"I must admit that I underestimated you Sparrow. Even though I already had an idea of what you were capable of, I didn't expect you to predict and counter my moves with your own. I was wrong to think so." She said. Jack grinned again as he hopped down from the desk and gave her a graceful bow.

"Why thank you for your kind compliments." Marine's clone cocked her pistol, catching Jack's and Marine's attention.

"Nevertheless, it still doesn't change the fact that I am pointing a gun at you and will fire with no hesitation. Give me the Cursed Coin and I might consider sparing your life." Jack made a 'tsk' sound and wagged a finger in front of Marine's clone.

"Tut. Tut. You can't kill me now love. If you do, then you'll never find out where the Cursed Coin is. You wouldn't think me foolish enough to bring it with me when I know that you wouldn't give a second thought about killing me and getting it from me now do you? No, of course not. And no, it's not with dear Lizzie or Carrie or old Norry. I hid the coin myself so only I know where the coin is."

"Where is the Cursed Coin Sparrow?"

"That's not a very nice way to ask someone for something. But if you ask me in a very seductive manner, I might consider your demands." Jack teased. Marine gave a muffled scream and closed her eyes shut as the sound of a loud gunshot filled the room. When she opened them again, she saw Jack still standing where he was and gave a muffled sigh of relief. The pistol the clone held in her hand had smoke coming from the tip of the barrel. She cocked the gun again, never losing her aim on Jack. There was a bullet hole inches away from Jack's feet. But the pirate paid no mind to it; it was as if a gun was never fired in the room and so close to him specifically.

"This is the last time I'm going to repeat myself. Where is the Cursed Coin?" Marine spoke in a threatening tone. The smile and the humor in Jack had disappeared and was replaced with a serious frown. He never faltered in his stand as he narrowed his eyes at them.

"Listen to me. This doesn't have to end in violence and bloodshed. I have something you want, and you have something that I want. Therefore as wise and mature pirates, I propose a fair trade. All I want is to get Marine back and to keep her away from harm. When I get her back, I promise that we'll never bother you ever again." He said. Marine's clone raised an eyebrow at him.

"What the hell are you talking about? You can't expect me to get a fair trade with that proposal." She said. Jack hid his eyes from her, but the large smug grin on his face was enough to let her know what he was currently feeling.

"I wasn't talking to you love." It took Marine's clone a few minutes to register into her mind what Jack had said. When she realized what he meant, her eyes went as wide as they possibly could. She turned her gaze to Maurice, who also had a look of surprise on his face. But there was a glint in his eye and Marine's clone caught on the true intention the moment she saw it.

"You wouldn't-"

Marine knew what Jack was planning the moment she saw the mischievous glint in his eyes. At the moment when her clone was caught off-guard by surprise, she charged at her and knocked her to the ground as hard as she could. Maurice on the other hand ignored his comrade and reached out towards Jack's neck. The pirate was younger, therefore he had the upper hand. He grabbed Maurice's wrist before they could reach him and pushed him to one side. Jack quickly made his way to the two Marines and grabbed the tied up one, tossing her over his shoulder roughly. Then he walked up towards a bookshelf and pushed one of the books further within the shelf like a button. The shelf automatically swung open like a door, revealing a staircase leading down into the darkness. Jack entered this secret passage and ran down as fast as he could while carrying Marine with him.

Marine was trying to speak to Jack but the pirate couldn't understand a word she said with the gag in her mouth. Therefore he ignored whatever she was trying to say and didn't bother trying to understand her. Marine grew irritated and in retaliation began to kick his back furiously and continuously. Jack gave a loud cry in pain and tripped on the last few steps of the stairs. Together both Jack and Marine fell down and crashed to the ground in crumpled heaps. Jack hissed as he felt pain all over his body. Marine was doing the same except she was making noises instead of hissing like Jack. The pirate captain lifted himself up on fours and looked down at Marine who was glaring heatedly.

"What the hell was that for? You could have killed us both with your stupid stunt!" Jack shouted. Marine shook her head from side to side, trying to emphasize on the gag in her mouth. When Jack got the message, he untied the gag around her mouth then regretted doing so as soon as it was out.

"First of all, you should have listened when I was trying to talk! You just kept on walking down as if I wasn't even there! I'm not a big sack that you simply carry! Second, I was going to tell you to untie me so you wouldn't have to carry me all the way to the ship you idiot! So unite me now before my clone comes after us. What the hell are you doing still kneeling and looking down at me?! UNTIE ME NOW!!" Jack grumbled as he unsheathed his cutlass and cut the rope that was wrapped around Marine. The female pirate have a sigh of relief as she threw the rope away and rubbed both of her arms.

"Finally! Took you long enough."

"Is this the thanks I get for saving you from being sucked into your clone?"

"You're not getting any thanks from me until I am safe, sound, unharmed and my feet are firmly planted on the deck of the Black Pearl. Now hurry up and get me out of here." She demanded. Jack bit back a sigh as he moved ahead of Marine and began running through the small underground path with the female pirate following right behind him.

"Maybe I shouldn't have come to her rescue..."

"I heard that Sparrow!"

* * *

When Jack and Marine came out of the underground path, they found themselves standing inside a storage room. Marine's chest heaved up and down as she tried to catch her breath and clear the dizzying feeling she was having. Jack was breathing just as heavily but he walked towards the door and peered outside for a moment. Then he closed the door again and turned his gaze to the female pirate.

"Are you all right?" He asked with a hint of worry. Marine looked at Jack and turned her head away from him to hide the blush that was creeping up her cheeks.

"I'm fine...so what's the plan now?"

"Now we make our way to the Black Pearl. We'll be meeting Elizabeth and the others at the docks in a few hours. They're busy trying to distract the guards and keeping them from finding out that we entered their headquarters." Jack explained.

"What about the rest of your crew?"

"They're making their way to the Pearl as we speak. I would never allow my men to recklessly get caught by the Royal Navy when I can help it. Elizabeth, Carrie and Norrington are the only bait we need and they're handling it better than I imagined."

"I guess there's not much choice there." She was interrupted when Jack pulled her quickly to one side and pressed her between himself and the wall. Marine was startled and gave a soft gasp as she hit her back against the wall and winced. Jack gave her an apologetic grin in return for her warning glare. The two of them listened as the thunder of boots went past them and shook the ground lightly. Marine peered over Jack's shoulder and saw that there was a very large number of men looking for them. The newly appointed Commodore was walking casually with his hands to his back as he watched his men search the whole town. Marine quickly pressed her face on Jack's chest and closed her eyes, praying that no one would see them there.

"We've been through this before, a few months ago as I recalled." Jack whispered with humor in his voice. Marine couldn't help but smile at that as she looked up at Jack.

"I believe we have. Let's hope the results stay the same as the results during that day." She whispered back. They waited for a long while as the guards moved in every direction. There were times when the men would move so close to where they were hiding that both Jack and Marine stiffened as hard as statues. But fortunately for them, none have seen them hiding where they were. Just when Marine thought that they were going to stay hidden there for the rest of their lives, the streets grew quiet. The guards had finally moved on to the other parts of town. Neither Jack nor Marine moved an inch despite this. They kept themselves hidden for as long as they could just to make sure that it was safe to move. Marine took a deep breath and heaved a sigh of relief.

"That was too close for comfort." She muttered. "Let's go before they come back." She added. She looked up at Jack and stiffened when he placed his arms on either side of her head and leaned closer to her, taking a whiff of her familiar scent. Marine's heart began to pound faster and her head grew dizzier as she felt his breath on her face. Her knees began to shake and she mustered as much strength as she could to keep herself from falling down and making a big fool of herself. She placed her hands on his chest to keep him at a distance but it only urged Jack on and sent electric shocks through her skin.

"What are you trying to do Jack Sparrow?" She said in a soft whisper. Jack moved his head closer then shifted to the side and placed his lips to her ear.

"Making you pay for beating me up back at the island." He whispered back, sending a chill down her spine. Marine swallowed the lump in her suddenly dry throat and took a shaky breath.

"I-I had to do it. If I didn't then you'd probably be dead right now." Her soft and hoarse voice could barely be heard as she spoke. Jack's lips grazed the spot below her ear and made her give out a small whimper. Her hands clenched into tight fists but they stayed frozen where they were. It was as if all her energy had been zapped when she felt his body so close to hers.

"I understand. I understand perfectly. But you still gave me more than I deserved you know. I couldn't move for days. It was painful."

"I'm sorry..." She mouthed, breathless and at a loss for words as Jack continued to give light, feathery kisses close to her ear. She had about a thousand retorts to what he said, but her mind was currently at a dead blank. She felt Jack's lips move down from her ear to her jaw, then traced the line towards the side of her lip. Marine's breathing became short and shaky as her lips trembled. Already she could imagine the feel of Jack's lips on hers. But Jack suddenly moved lower, to where her neck was. Marine gritted her teeth and struggled not to let a moan escape her mouth. Her mind fought against the foggy bliss that enveloped her and grasped onto a single thought like a lifeline.

"The guards...they'll be back. We have to go."

"They won't be back for a long while. It's a big town. We still have some time." Jack countered as he nipped her skin lightly. Marine closed her eyes shut and tensed. As much as she wanted this, she didn't want it this way. She struggled to keep her sanity for as long as she could, and hoped that her reasons for resisting him were enough to keep herself from losing it.

"Please." At those firm words Jack lifted his head to stare at her. She still had her eyes shut but felt his intense gaze on her. She sensed him moving closer again, until she could feel his breath on her face. His mouth was close to hers that she would only have to move forward slightly to meet them. Finally, she gave in. Her hands held his shoulders and her head began moving to close the space between them. But as soon as she had done this, Jack moved back from her. The warmth she had felt earlier immediately disappeared and the fog that was blurring her mind cleared. She opened her eyes and saw Jack standing in front of her with a mischievous grin on his face. She narrowed her eyes and felt her body lose their stiffness.

"What the hell are you playing at Sparrow?" She spoke in between shaky breaths. Her heart was slowly reverting back to its normal beating and her breath began to normalize. Jack still had that grin on his face as he turned around and began to walk away.

"I said I was going to make you pay for beating me up right?" Marine growled softly to herself as she willed herself to follow Jack, muttering curses and profanities along the way. Jack caught some of what she said and couldn't help but chuckle softly to himself.

* * *

Elizabeth, Carrie and Norrington were huddled together among a pile of large crates as a couple of Royal Navy guards went past them in a rush. Carrie pressed both of her hands to her mouth, trying to hold her breath to keep the guards from hearing her ragged breathing. Her heart was pounding hard inside her chest and she wondered if anyone would hear it. Norrington peered over the crates for a moment then looked at Elizabeth and Carrie. He widened his eyes when he saw Carrie's face turning pale.

"Why are you holding in your breath?" He asked. Carrie opened her mouth and gave a loud gasping sound as she took a deep breath. Then she looked at Norrington and blushed in embarrassment.

"Well...I was afraid that the guards would hear me breathing so I held it in...it always happened in the movies...and holding your breath kept people from knowing that your presence is there. Ninjas do it all the time don't they? I think super secret spies do too. They can hold their breaths for more than a minute." She added. After a few seconds she realized that she was just blabbering about random things and pressed her lips together. She turned an even darker shade of red and looked down at the ground. "Sorry. Just forget it." Norrington stared at her for a few more minutes before he decided to let it go and looked back over the crates.

"There are no more signs of the guards. Perhaps they have moved on to another area in the town." He said.

"Maybe they decided that we couldn't be found and gave up trying to look." Carrie suggested. Norrington shook his head grimly.

"As far as the Royal Navy is concerned, a pirate can still be captured as long as he is still within their reach. The only way these guards will give up looking for us would be when we get onto the ship and give them no chance to chase after us." Norrington explained. Carrie pouted and sighed. Elizabeth gave Carrie a comforting pat then looked to the side and widened her eyes in surprise.

"It's Jack! And there's Marine right behind him!" She cried happily. Carrie stood up from their hiding spot and turned around to look. The two pirates were making their way towards them as quickly as they could. Jack saw the group first and smiled in relief. When Marine saw them her eyes settled on her best friend and she slowed down a little. The two women stood where they were, facing each other without moving an inch. Elizabeth and Norrington stood up as well but they didn't dare disturb the two. Jack stopped walking when he saw Carrie's expression and looked over his shoulder at Marine. She seemed hesitant and relieved at the same time. Jack went towards her back and gave her a slight push.

"Let's go. The guards can come back here any minute." He said. Marine narrowed her eyes at Jack then sighed and began to walk towards the group again. She stopped when she was a meter away from Carrie. Jack moved on towards Norrington and Elizabeth and began to speak to them in silent murmurs. Carrie stood there and rubbed her left arm with her right hand while Marine scratched the back of her head. They avoided each other's gazes, making sure that they look at anything but each other.

"So..." Marine began. Carrie looked up at her with a curious expression on her face. Marine bit her lip and scratched the back of her head more before looking at Carrie. "It looks like you're doing pretty well...that's good."

"Yeah...how about you? Your clone didn't hurt you badly or anything did she?"

"No, I'm fine. Just a bit hungry I guess. The ship she took barely had anything so she starved most of her own men and gave me what was left of her own meal." When Carrie heard this she took a good look at Marine and realized just how thin she had become. Her face was a bit pale and her eyes seemed a bit hollow. Carrie was about to say something about it when Marine spoke up first.

"Carrie I'm so sorry about what happened before. I know that I can never go back to the past and change what I said back then. I'll understand if you hate me and never want to see me again after all this is over. All I could do now is ask for your forgiveness. So...I...I'm really really sorry." She said as she looked down on the ground. Carrie's lips curled into a very wide smile and she felt tears falling down from her eyes. She ran as fast as she could towards Marine and stretched out her arms to her. Marine was taken aback and wasn't prepared for the sudden lunge so she fell to the ground with Carrie on top of her. The two fell to the ground with a loud thud and made the female pirate wince in pain. Elizabeth, Norrington and Jack turned to the two women's direction when they heard the commotion and couldn't help but smile when they saw Carrie hugging Marine tightly.

"Vanessa!! I'm so sorry for being such a stubborn jerk too! I really missed you and I was so worried when Jack told us that you were taken away by your clone. I thought something had happened to you like you were hurt or injured or worse your half of the soul was already taken away and that we were too late." Carrie cried. Marine sighed as she patted Carrie's head and smiled at her tenderly.

"You idiot. You didn't have to worry about me at all. As you can see, I'm fine." She said. "Once you get off of me that is." She added. The blond haired woman blushed slightly as she quickly stood up from the other raven haired one and helped her stand up. Together they laughed, and the sound was so light and cheerful that Elizabeth was moved to tears at the sight. She rushed towards the two women and hugged Marine first.

"I'm so glad you're all right." She said. Marine smiled at her and hugged her back.

"I'm glad you guys are doing well too." Seeing Elizabeth standing before her brought new thoughts to her mind. She looked at Jack and Norrington who walked up towards the group as well. "What about Will and the others? Won't they start to wonder where we are?"

"Don't worry about that." Jack said with pride. "I received your message and found out where Cornelius and your father hid the treasure. I sent a messenger bird to my father in the hopes that he would give it to them when they arrive. I told Will to grab the treasure and meet up with us at Nassau." He explained. Marine looked at Jack in surprise.

"You sent a bird to your father? I thought you two weren't in good terms with each other?" She asked him.

"We're not. But that doesn't mean that I can't ask him for small favors like this especially when I really need it." Jack said with a grin. "Hopefully he'll be nice enough to do as I asked and give it to Will." He added which made Marine sigh and shake her head in disbelief.

"Well then, I guess we all ought to go on then." Marine said with a grin. "I can't wait to get to the Pearl and get myself something to eat! Anything would be better than the crap they give to us back at the other ship." She said with a grimace. Carrie giggled and smiled brightly at her best friend, until a shadow fell behind Marine. The female pirate's face quickly changed from a happy one to a pained and surprised one in an instant. Her back arched back and she gazed up at the sky as she felt a burning feeling in her back. The scream that came out of her mouth was terrible and frightening, freezing everyone to their spots for a moment. Her body gave off a soft white glow that began to flow towards a certain spot in her back. The pupils of her eyes, bright ocean blue orbs, began to darken and dull. Jack ran towards Marine as fast as he could and took out his cutlass. With one hard thrust, he lunged for the person standing behind Marine.

Marine's clone quickly dodged Jack's attack as she jumped back. While doing so, her hold on Marine was gone, sending the other female crumpling to the ground. Carrie caught her in her arms and was shaking her, trying to wake her up. Elizabeth narrowed her eyes at Marine's clone as she took out her own cutlass and raised it in front of her.

"What did you do to her?!" She cried angrily. Marine's clone held up a gold coin in her hand and smiled when she saw the surprised look of everyone. Jack's hands automatically went up to his neck to feel for the necklace that wasn't there anymore.

"How did you-"

"I found this lying on the ground while I was walking through the underground passage you escaped to." Marine's clone explained. "So you were just bluffing about not having it with you back at the office. How clever of you. And it would have worked, had you not dropped this during your escape." She added. "I've finally gotten the bigger half of the soul. I guess I have you to thank for that Jack Sparrow. Hand her over and I'll spare you all." She said. Carrie placed Marine's limp form gently on the ground and stood up. Her hands clenched into tight fists and her eyes glared heatedly at Marine's clone that it would have been enough to burn her.

"You think we're going to give up that easily? We'll never hand her over to you! You'll see, Vanessa will get better and she'll take what's rightfully hers in the end." Marine's clone laughed at her in reply.

"Take what's rightfully hers? Have a look at your Marine now! She's nothing more than an outer shell of the person she used to be. It'll be very easy for me to just walk up to her right now and take the rest of her soul into me." The clone said as she took a step forward. Carrie immediately stepped in front of her to block her path.

"If you want to get to Vanessa, you have to go through me first." She said determinedly. Elizabeth took Marine's body and carried it father from Marine's clone, glaring at the enemy the whole while. Even Norrington stood in front of Elizabeth with his sword out. Jack was standing beside the clone and pointed his cutlass to her neck. Marine's clone looked at everyone calmly then gave a heavy sigh.

"If you're all going to be so stubborn then I guess I'll leave you for now. I can wait for a while longer. There's nothing you can do about Marine's condition now after all. All I need to do is wait for the perfect moment to seize her and get the rest of her soul. See you later then." She made four knives appear in her left hand and threw them towards Elizabeth and Norrington. The former Commodore managed to block all of the weapons with his sword but this gave the clone a change to run from the group. Carrie made to go after her but Jack grabbed her arm and pulled her back.

"Let me go Jack! We have to catch her before she escapes." Carrie shouted. As she struggled they started to hear the sound of the guards making their way towards the docks. Jack shook his head at Carrie and pulled her back for emphasis.

"There's no time. The Royal Navy is approaching us. We have to get to the ship first." He reasoned out. "We have Marine with us. She'll come back for her for sure. This isn't over yet." Carrie began to cry but forced herself to keep it in. She closed her eyes as tears began to fall down her face. Jack felt her body lose its strength and wrapped his arm around her to support her. He looked at Elizabeth and Norrington, who carried Marine's body, and nodded to them.

"Head for one of the rowboats. We haven't much time before they arrive and attack us."


	30. Never Give Up

_**"You're not going to give up are you?" - Jack Sparrow**_

**Chapter 30 - Never Give Up**

Gibbs paced the deck of the Black Pearl quickly and rubbed his hands dry repeatedly to take off some of the tension and anxiety he was feeling. From time to time he would turn his gaze at the water, expecting to see a boat or a familiar face headed towards the ship. But so far he's seen none of what he was hoping for. He turned his gaze to one of the crewmembers who was doing his chore and called his attention.

"Are ye sure the Captain said he'll come?" He asked. The man looked up from what he was doing and nodded.

"Aye! 'E said to wait for them and to prepare the ship for sailing once we arrived on the Black Pearl." Gibbs waved a hand, signaling the other to get back to his work, and began his pacing again. How long was the captain going to take? And will they bring Marine with them when they arrive? Gibbs had been anxious to leave Port Royal ever since the crew came back and told him what had happened ashore. He couldn't rest easy knowing that the Royal Navy knew they were close by and that they could attack them by surprise at any time. As he went on pacing, Carter suddenly came up to Gibbs with energy.

"Gibbs! The Captain's coming!" The first mate widened his eyes at the young man.

"The Captain? Where are they lad?"

"They're on a rowboat, comin' towards the ship from the other side." Carter said as he pointed at the opposite side. "Surprised everyone too. We thought they were Marines who had discovered our hiding place. Almost decided to blast 'em with the cannons." He went on. Gibbs ran past the young man and leaned over the railings to see for himself. He saw the small boat, with a familiar head donning a tricorn hat, and couldn't help but heave a sigh of relief. He counted the people in the boat and frowned when he only saw four.

"Where be Marine?" He wondered. Carter had heard him and couldn't help but look down and frown. He held a piece of rag in his hand and unconsciously wrung it tightly. Gibbs saw this and prepared himself for the worst, taking a deep breath first before urging the young man to speak. But before the boy could say anything, they heard the sound of men moving about energetically and saw the crew bringing down a ladder from the side. Jack was the first one to go up onto the deck. Some of the other men backed away slowly when they saw the murderous glint in their Captain's eyes. Even Gibbs was hesitant to speak to Jack whenever he was in one of those moods. "Uh...Captain...?" He muttered softly. Jack turned his gaze to his first mate.

"Once Norrington gets up order the men to pull the boat up to carry the ladies in." He said in a monotone voice. Gibbs furrowed his brows in confusion and was hesitant to ask why Jack ordered him to do so. But before he could decide whether to ask or not, Jack strode to his cabin and slammed the door with a loud bang. Everyone on the boat cringed at the harshness of it. The former Commodore got up onto the deck next and sighed when he saw everyone's expressions. Gibbs turned to Carter and told him what Jack's orders were. As he watched the young man run towards the other men, the first mate walked up to Norrington then spoke as he threw a concerned look towards the Captain's cabin.

"What is going on? What has the Captain so upset?" He asked. Norrington grimaced as he looked at the men beginning to pull the boat up.

"You'll see when the boat's been taken care of." He spoke. Gibbs could catch the slight worry in Norrington's tone and felt his whole body fill up with dread. If the former Commodore was upset with what happened, then it definitely wasn't good news. He watched as the boat slowly rose up onto the ship and saw Carrie and Elizabeth looking as bad as Norrington and Jack were. Elizabeth came down first, with the help of Norrington, and together the two helped Carrie bring down another person who was unconscious. The whole crew widened their eyes when they saw the slumped body of Marine.

"Where's Roderic?" Elizabeth asked. The man immediately stepped up upon hearing his name. He looked down at Marine and frowned.

"What happened to her?"

"We'll explain everything later. But first," She turned her gaze to Gibbs. "Tell the men to set sail for Port Nassau." Gibbs nodded and walked off to shout orders at his men to start sailing. Elizabeth looked back at Roderic. "We'll bring her to my cabin. Please help her Roderic." The other man felt his frown grow, but he said nothing and nodded in reply. Together Elizabeth, Carrie and Norrington followed the ship's doctor to where Elizabeth's cabin was. They placed Marine on the bed and watched as the doctor began to examine her whole body.

"She's very pale and cold. But fortunately she's still breathing. Looks like she's fallen into some sort of a coma." Roderic said as he looked at the three others in the room. "Tell me what happened back there." Gibbs entered the cabin after making sure that they were headed for the right course just as Carrie began to tear up and fall down to the ground on her knees.

"It was horrible! Jack had saved Vanessa. And they were making their way towards us. We met and had a small talk, but then all of a sudden her clone arrived and took her soul from her body! She's going to be all right isn't she Roderic? She's not going to stay like this forever is she?" She asked. Roderic looked at Carrie and sighed.

"I don't know...I might be a doctor, but this case is pretty rare...to have your soul taken out of your body. I don't know much about that stuff." He said as he looked down at the ground. "I'm so sorry Carrie." Elizabeth held Carrie as she began to cry. She looked at Roderic with a determined look on her face.

"You might not know much about souls being taken out, but you still know how to take care of a person's body. Can you take care of Marine's while we find a way to get her soul back?" She asked. Roderic gave the young blond haired woman a smile and a nod.

"Of course I will. I'll do anything to help out." Gibbs gave a long and heavy sigh as he massaged his head.

"So that's why the Captain was so upset." He muttered.

"Upset? More like enraged." Norrington replied. "It would be a challenge to stay near him or speak with him now." Carrie looked at Norrington with a tear-stained frown.

"Of course he's mad. We just lost Vanessa minutes after getting her back." She buried her face in Elizabeth's shoulder as more tears came. "We were back to being best friends again...it's not fair! Why does this have to happen now?" Elizabeth looked at Marine's pale and still face and gave a weary sigh.

"It can't be helped now. What's done is done. The only thing we can do now is meet up with the others and hope for the best."

* * *

It pained her to watch her best friend scream and struggle in agony as her clone began sucking the rest of her soul. Carrie tried to run towards them, but found herself unable to move for some strange reason. She looked at her arms and legs and saw them shackled to an iron ball. She gripped one of the chains and with as much strength as she could muster, began to pull. It didn't move, not even an inch. Tears began to fall down her face as she looked back at the two. She tried to scream, begged the clone to stop, but there was nothing she could do as the clone continued with the process. She frantically looked around her and saw that Jack and the others were busy fighting against other men.

_Jack! Elizabeth! Guys! Can't you see what's happening? Help her. Do something!_

A chill went up her spine as she heard the sound of a cold and malicious laughter. It was Vanessa's voice, but it was filled with a nasty, spine-chilling evil that made Carrie shiver involuntary. She looked back and saw the clone give her an evil grin.

_"You're too late. You're too weak to save her before, what makes you think you're strong enough to save her now? Say goodbye to your precious best friend." _Carrie watched helplessly as Vanessa slowly faded away and felt her heart wrench when she saw one of her hands lift up and stretch out to her with a longing, desperate expression on her face.

_"Help me Carrie..."_

_"VANESSA!"_

Carrie sat up straight and felt her chest rise and fall as she tried to recover her breath. Beads of sweat fell down from her forehead to her chin while the blanket covering her had fallen to the ground from her tossing and turning. She looked down at her hands and noticed how pale and shaky they were. She closed them into tight fists to stop them and took a few more breaths before calming down. When she was sure that her breathing had gone back to normal, she took a look around the room. The sun was still far from up, lighting the room in a dim brightness that only came from the lantern on the small table. She shook her head as she tried to remember what happened before she fell asleep.

Norrington, Roderic and Gibbs left the cabin first to tend to their duties on the Black Pearl. After a few hours Elizabeth left as well to go to sleep after being offered another of the empty cabins on the ship. Carrie declined the offer, preferring to stay by Marine's side in case she would wake up all of a sudden. She could remember sitting on the chair backwards and keeping an eye on Vanessa's still form. But she didn't recall bringing a blanket or using one. She picked it up from the ground and folded it neatly, placing it on the bed where Marine lay.

The sound of the cabin door opening startled Carrie. She quickly turned around and felt her muscles relax when she saw Jack entering the cabin with a bottle of rum in his hand. It took the pirate a while before he noticed Carrie staring at him. When he did, he grunted as he made his way in and sat down on one of the other chairs in the room. Carrie watched him silently, noting that he had gotten thinner since the last time Marine had been on the Black Pearl. She could see how worried Jack was for her. The pirate captain took another swig at his bottle before looking at Carrie.

"Did I wake you up?" He asked.

"No, no you didn't." Carrie replied. "Were you the one who placed this on me?" She asked, gesturing to the blanket she had folded. Jack gave her a small smile and raised his bottle in reply.

"You were getting cold."

"Thanks Jack." Carrie looked at Marine's face, and remembered the way it slowly faded away before her eyes. She immediately closed them and shook her head, trying to get rid of the image in her mind. Jack saw the motion and looked at her curiously.

"Something wrong?"

"No. Everything's fine." Carrie looked away to avoid Jack's lingering gaze. She knew that if he saw her face he would see the way they were beginning to become watery. She didn't want him to see that. Jack took another swig of his rum and looked at the blond haired woman in consideration before he stretched out his legs and relaxed.

"You know, Marine had the same exact expression that you have on your face now." He began. Carrie's head snapped up and she looked at the pirate in surprise. Jack gave her a small smile before he went on. "When I asked her what was wrong, she tried to make me leave her. But in the end she couldn't resist my charms and told me everything." Carrie placed her arms on the top of the chair she was sitting on and rested her head against them.

"What did she tell you?" She asked in curiosity.

"Oh some of this, some of that." Jack said as he flailed his hands about. "She said she had a dream about being a corpse and that it was something like a punishment for not giving enough attention to her parent's deaths." His eyes glanced sideways at her before he looked back in front at nothing in particular. "My incredibly intuitive sense of the female mind tells me that you had a similar experience just before I arrived. Would you care to enlighten me the way Marine did before?" Carrie frowned at him and bit her lips hesitantly. Then she took a deep breath and began.

"Well, I dreamt of Vanessa and her clone. Vanessa was being sucked, and she was fading away. I tried to run towards her, but I couldn't move no matter how much I tried. I shouted for you and the others, pleaded you to go and save her. But you were all busy fighting other pirates to notice us. Her clone was laughing at me, telling me that I was too weak to save her." Carrie pressed her face to her arm and hid the tears that fell down from Jack. "It hurts Jack. To watch someone you care so much for die right in front of you while you couldn't do anything about it. I don't want that to happen to Vanessa. I don't want to become a burden while everyone else is working so hard to save her. I'll never forgive myself if she dies because of me."

"It won't happen." Jack replied. "No matter what happens to me, I'll get Marine back safe and with her soul complete. And I don't care how long it takes to do that." The finality of the tone of his voice lifted Carrie's spirits up. She wiped the tears with the back of her hand before looking at Jack and smiling gratefully at him.

"You'll really do that Jack?"

"Of course! There's nothing that Captain Jack Sparrow couldn't handle." The pirate replied with a smug grin. Carrie looked at him then began fiddling with her fingers.

"Jack...can I ask you a question?" When Jack didn't say anything, she went on. "I know this might seem too personal, but I was wondering...do you...are you...um...how should I say this...?" She turned a light shade of pink as she spoke. Jack noted the reluctance in her voice and looked at the blond haired woman both curiously and amusingly. She curled her hands, which were on top of her lap, into tight fists and she looked at Jack with a steely, determined gaze. "Do you like Vanessa?" Upon hearing the question, Jack blinked in surprise then grinned.

"Of course I like the lass. She's feisty, strong, tough and easily falls for my attractive charms. What's not to like about her?" He said. Carrie shook her head at him.

"No, I didn't mean in that way Jack. Do you like Vanessa...as more than a friend? Do you love her?" She asked again. This time the humor in Jack's face was gone. He looked at his bottle of rum and was about to take another swig when he realized that it was already empty. Grumbling a little, Jack tossed the bottle to the ground and stood up from his chair. Carrie watched as the pirate made his way to the door in silence. She looked at him expectantly then widened her eyes when he opened the door.

"Where are you going?" She asked.

"To get myself a bottle of rum of course." He replied. Then before Carrie could open her mouth, Jack walked out of the cabin and closed the door. Carrie sat there on the chair, dumbfounded by Jack's strange reaction to her question. She narrowed her eyes suspiciously then stood up to follow the captain, wondering what was going on in Jack's head. The sky was still dark and the seas both calm and tranquil as she made her way to the galley, where she knew Jack would be in. There was no one else awake and moving about the ship, she could feel it through her bones. She wished she hadn't gotten that dream, then maybe she would still be asleep like the rest of them. On the other hand, she wouldn't get this chance to force an answer to her question out of Jack. Carrie peered through the side of the door and saw Jack Sparrow sitting on one of the chairs with a bottle in his hand. She could see a few more bottles on the table by his side and couldn't help but smirk to herself.

"So, you didn't intend to come back to the cabin to answer my question?" She spoke aloud. Jack jumped and almost dropped his bottle in surprise. He looked at Carrie, standing there by the door with her arms crossed and a glare, and sighed.

"I never said that I was going back." He muttered. Right after he said this he could feel the glare on him heat up and grimaced when Carrie walked further into the galley and sat down in front of him.

"Fine." Carrie said as she settled in then stared at Jack intensely. "So are you going to answer my question or not?"

"No."

"No, I'm not going to answer the question or no, I don't like Vanessa?" Jack took a deep breath and exhaled it through his gritted teeth. Carrie wasn't fazed by his obvious show of irritation and waited for his answer expectantly. A few minutes passed by with neither Carrie nor Jack speaking. The pirate kept drinking bottles of rum while the young woman kept looking at Jack. The only sound that could be heard was the tapping of Carrie's fingers on the table repeatedly. The air around them was tense, awkward and thick enough to slice with a knife. At long last, Jack grumbled as he looked back at Carrie, who still didn't take her gaze off him.

"You're not going to give up are you?" Carrie couldn't help but grin wide when she saw Jack slowly losing his resolve not to answer.

"Nope!" That earned her another sigh from the pirate. Jack finished the bottle he had in his hand then reached the table for another one. He uncorked it, then took a very large swig of rum before he looked at me with a threatening gaze.

"This conversation does not leave this galley, savvy?" Carrie nodded with a smile. Jack muttered some curses under his breath before he looked at Carrie. "Marine...well...how I feel about her now is...complicated." He began as he fumbled for words and flailed his hands in exaggeration. "As Captain Jack Sparrow, I am known to have...shall we say, intimate relationships with different kinds of women. Most of them were ashore and were professionals in the art of sensuality and the like; if you get what I mean." Carrie rolled her eyes, knowing exactly what Jack meant. "Others, like dear Lizzie and, who could forget, my dear Anamaria for example, see me as an adoring, charming, suave and attractive man that they would always follow to the ends of the earth. But Marine, she's...different. Obviously she's not some simple wench looking for a man to pay her for her services. She could take care of herself first of all. She's just as good and dirty a pirate as I am. My attempts to use my charms on her to get her to bed with me failed, yet there's still enough that kept me interested with her. She's like Lizzie and Anamaria...only different" Carrie waited for Jack to speak further until she realized that he wasn't going to go on and raised an eyebrow at him.

"That's it? You're interested with her?" She asked incredulously. "If you're just interested, you wouldn't risk your life and take a bullet for her. You wouldn't send a letter to your father, a person you had never spoken to for a long time, for her. You would never be willing to go into a Royal Navy headquarters just to save some woman who doesn't even have anything to give you in return. Just why did you agree to help Vanessa with this clone issue when you knew that you wouldn't get anything from it? And why are you always so upset whenever we lose Vanessa to the clone? I don't think you'd do all this to a woman you simply have an _interest _on." She said. Jack narrowed his eyes at the young woman.

"What is it exactly that you want me to say?"

"I want you to tell me the truth! Do you love my best friend or not?"

"Why am I expected to answer that question?"

"Because I can tell that she has feelings for you." Carrie replied, causing Jack to stop and tense up. He avoided her gaze and listened as Carrie went on. "She's my best friend, and I really care about her and want her to be happy. I know the way she thinks and I know most of her quirks and habits. I can see that she's really happy when she's with you - when you're not arguing that is. It's like she's at her best whenever you're around irking her and accompanying her. I don't know if she really loves you Jack, but I know that she has feelings for you enough to be affected with your own reactions to her. I know that you'll usually flirt with her and stuff since she's an attractive person to you, but if you don't really have feelings for her, then I beg you to stop. Because believe it or not, what you're doing is just giving her that little bit of hope that you might return her feelings." Carrie stood up and saw Jack still tensed and looking at nothing in particular.

"You don't have to answer my question Jack, but please think about what you're doing. If you break my best friend's heart I'll never forgive you for as long as I live." She said. Jack watched as Carrie began leaving and went out of the galley's entrance. He looked at the bottles of rum still on top of the table and carried them all in his arms. Then he returned them back to where they belonged and went out of the galley as well.

* * *

Everyone stood by the docks as a small rowboat slowly made its way towards the island. They could see Jack Sparrow in the lead, and three others behind him. Will gave a sigh of relief when he saw the lovely face of his wife and waved his arms to catch their attention. Elizabeth saw Will and brightened up at the sight of the others waiting for them by the dock. She pointed the group out to Jack and the others, causing the boat to slightly change its angle so it would make its way closer to their area. Norrington stepped out and tied the boat to port while everyone else went out. But the sight of Marine's slumped form being carried by both Elizabeth and Carrie made everyone standing gasp.

"What happened to Marine? Is she all right?" Will asked worriedly. Carrie looked at Cornelius, who had a slightly curious look on his face, and began to feel her eyes water up.

"Please help her Cornelius. You're the only one who knows things about clones and this merging souls and stuff." The old man walked up to Marine and held her wrist, checking for a pulse. Then he forced her eyes open and saw that the eyeballs were turned up. After a few more slight check-ups, Cornelius stepped back and looked at the newcomers with a serious frown on his face.

"Tell me everything that happened. Leave nothing out."

"We can continue this conversation back on my ship." Anamaria said as she stepped in front of Cornelius. "Jack Sparrow isn't welcome on this port and Elizabeth and Carrie can't just stand there trying to carry Marine for as long as they can."

"She's right. Here, let me carry her to the ship." Will said as he walked towards Elizabeth and Carrie and carried Marine bridal-style. He went on ahead while everyone followed right behind him towards Anamaria's ship located not far from where they were. The deck was empty save for one of Anamaria's crew members watching over the ship. She nodded to him in acknowledgment before following the rest of the group to her cabin. Marine was placed on the bed gently while everyone else scattered about the room. Then once everyone was settled in, Jack began to explain to Cornelius, Will, Anamaria and Jones what had happened during their separation. He ended with an angry tone as he described how a part of Marine's soul had been sucked in by the clone. The old man placed a finger to his chin in thought.

"I see..." He looked at Marine, who was still as pale and unmoving as before. "Well, I've never encountered someone who only had a small portion of their soul still left in them. So I can't really be sure about this. But...I think that there's still a chance to get her consciousness back." He said. Carrie's face lit up with hope just like the rest of the group.

"Really? What do we have to do? What can be done?" She asked frantically. Cornelius smiled at her, glad to see not only her but everyone else eager to help out their friend. But he felt his mood dampen a little as he continued his explanation.

"Sadly, I really don't know how. But since Marine still has a bit of her soul in her, I am sure that she's still alive somewhere inside. It's like she's fallen into a coma, if you understand what that means. All we need to do is to trigger the remaining soul in her and wake her up. But..." At this Cornelius' expression grew grave. "It's difficult to say how she will react to her awakening. Whether she would still function normally or have some problems because she lacks parts of her soul I can't say."

"That's all right! As long as she's conscious I'm sure we can think of something." Carrie countered. "It'll be easier for her to get back her soul if she's conscious."

"Speaking of which, did you get the chest as I instructed you to?" Jack asked, turning the conversation to another path. Will and Jones looked at each other then at Jack, with small grins on their faces.

"Yeah. It's hidden somewhere along with the rest of the crates and supplies below deck. We also happen to meet your charming dad while we were at Shipwreck's Cove." Jones teased. "You two do have some resemblance with each other." He added. Jack frowned while Carrie widened her eyes in surprise.

"You guys met Jack's dad?! What does he look like? Is he nice? Does he wobble the way Jack does when he walks like he's always drunk?"

"Hey! I resent that comment." Jack complained, causing Carrie to grin and stick her tongue out at him. Elizabeth looked at the two and couldn't help but smile a little in relief. It was good to see them in better spirits than before. The air and the mood around the Black Pearl on their way to Port Nassau was gloomy and depressing. She looked at Marine's cold face and hoped that she would get better soon so everything would go well again.

"I think you'll get the answers to your questions sooner than later." Cornelius replied, causing everyone's heads to turn to the older man in curiosity. "I mentioned before that there might be a way to bring Marine out of her comatose. And I added that I don't know how. But there's someone who might have an idea." He fell silent, letting everyone in the room finish the thought. When Jack realized what Cornelius was getting at, his face fell and he held his head in his hands.

"No, oh bloody hell no. Not that, anything but that." He muttered as he slowly shook his head from side to side repeatedly. It took a while before he stopped what he was doing and looked at Cornelius with a dangerous glare on his face. "And you are absolutely, positively sure that he knows something about this? Isn't there anyone else we can ask?" Cornelius couldn't help but chuckle at Jack's reaction. He looked at Marine then nodded at the pirate captain.

"Yes Jack, I'm pretty sure that your father is the only man that I know who can help us now. So, will you agree to seeking his help or not? Either way, even if you do say no, the others will willingly go to him and ask for his help with or without your presence." Jack saw the looks of agreement in Carrie's, Will's, Elizabeth's, even Jones' face and couldn't help but heave a heavy sigh.

"I might as well come along, knowing the lot of you, you'd all be lost and in despair without your precious, and the great Captain Jack Sparrow." He declared. Carrie sighed and rolled her eyes, but there was a look of relief on her face as she nodded to Jack.

"Then can we go now? The sooner we get there the sooner we can find out how to save Vanessa." Jack held up a finger to her and wagged it at her admonishingly.

"Tut. Tut. We can't be too eager now, or everything we've worked so hard for is going to crumble and fall apart. We'll spend a day here, preparing for the journey ahead and to restock some of the supplies that need restocking. Then we'll make the best time we can to get to my father and ask for his help. As much as I don't want to..." Jack added in a soft grumble, then quickly looked at Carrie with a grin. "Savvy?" The blond haired woman frowned a little then sighed relentingly.

"Savvy."

* * *

Anamaria was standing on the rails of her ship and gazed upon the Black Pearl right by her own ship's side. She watched as the men on the other ship moved about frantically to prepare to set sail for Shipwreck's Cove and saw Carrie and Elizabeth standing behind the rails of their ship. They were looking back at her and she couldn't help but smile at them.

"Are you sure you don't need my help anymore?"

"We're sure. We wouldn't want you to get into trouble for helping a pirate ship after all." Carrie said. "Thanks for all the help Anamaria!"

"It was nothing! I'm willing to help out my friends in need. Good luck and I pray that you save Marine soon." She said. "The next time I see the Black Pearl you guys better be there alive! Or if you aren't on the ship, Jack better give me good news about you." Carrie bit her lip and forced herself to keep smiling as she nodded to the dark skinned woman.

"That's a promise!" Anamaria smiled then let her gaze fall on Jack who was steering at the helm of his ship. She cupped her hands to her mouth and shouted to get his attention.

"Jack Sparrow you better not hurt these women or I'm going to track you down and beat you up myself!" Jack looked up at hearing his name and grimaced at Anamaria's threat. The urge to get the ship to sail faster than before rose in his mind but he tried to ignore it. Instead, he smiled at Anamaria with his usual, charming grin.

"Certainly love. Anything to keep you from killing me..." Jack grumbled under his breath. Even though they were miles apart from each other, Jack could swear that the suspicious glare Anamaria gave her was because she had heard what he said. The pirate could feel a chill run down his spine at the thought that the other woman could know what he was thinking or could hear him speak that softly from a far distance. Shrugging aside the thought, he turned his attention to Jones who was surprisingly still on the deck of the Black Pearl. He passed the helm to Cotton and made his way to the thief.

"You're not thinking of staying on Port Nassau? No one's going to stop you now." Jack said, causing Jones to jump in surprise. "I doubt that the clone would chase after you when we have both Marine and the cursed gold coins in our possession. You're free to go, get back to your life as a thief, and do whatever else you want to do." He told him. The thief smiled and chuckled at Jack as he continued to stand by the rails and look over his hometown.

"I've thought about it...considered it...I was tempted to do it...but I won't. Marine is a good friend of mine too you know. Sure, at first I was only forced to come along and all that. But after everything I've gone through, I think I have the right to help out and see this through to the end. For once, you're not going to kick me out of one of your adventures Jack." The pirate grinned at the thief.

"Are ye sure Jones? It's not too late to get back to your old life. We're still close to the port." Jones's smile widened and he nodded at Jack.

"I can get back to my old life after all this is over. For now, helping a friend's more important." He replied. Jack placed a hand on the thief's shoulder and shook it slightly before walking away from him and shouting orders at the top of his lungs.

"Man the braces! Unfurl the sails! Hoist the anchor! We're leaving Port Nassau."

"AYE!" Carrie and Elizabeth waved goodbye to Anamaria as their ship began to pull apart. The dark skinned woman was smiling and waving back at them as she watched the ship slowly sail away to the horizon. She waited until they were out of sight before ordering her own crew to prepare to set sail. She turned her gaze to the path that Jack and the others had disappeared to and prayed for the gods to keep them safe.


	31. Teague's Purpose

**AN: **Ahhhhh I'm really terribly sorry for the long delay! I'm really busy with college and all that; it's a wonder that I even get enough time to write and update the story. Here's the next chapter so please read and review and enjoy the story!

* * *

_**"Why is Jack so angry with you that he doesn't want to see you or speak to you that badly?" - Carrie Lockheart**_

**Chapter 31 - Teague's Purpose**

Captain Edward Teague sat on the chair in his room, playing random but melodious tunes with his guitar. He let his mind wander about and think of nothing in particular as his fingers automatically strum the strings to his own tune by heart. The old man's eyes were closed, as if deep in concentration. But he wasn't really putting much effort into what he was doing. To him, it was just random, peaceful playing. While his eyes were closed, the awareness to his other senses heightened. He could hear people walking and feel the floor tremble a little with the number of feet making their way towards him. The door to his home opened and he sensed pairs of eyes staring at him. He didn't open his eyes immediately to look at who had entered. Somehow his intuition already knew who it was before he heard the newcomer speak. It was like blood calling on to blood.

"First, you send me a letter with an order so I could help you in your mischief. Then after all these years of avoiding my presence, you decided to come and visit your father did you Jackie boy?" The pirate winced at the nickname his father had given him when he was still a young boy.

"What can I say? I suddenly needed to see you." He replied. Teague opened his eyes and saw his son standing together with Jones, Will, Cornelius, and three other people whom he had never met before. His eyes settled on the young woman who lay unconscious in Will's arms. He placed his guitar on the ground with the gentle handling of a mother and stood up from his chair.

"Place her on the bed. We can discuss what you want to ask of me while we have dinner." He said. He took a step forward and met Jack who blocked his path.

"I don't think that's necessary dad. All I need you to give me is the name of a person who can help her." Jack argued. Teague ignored him, walking around him to face the three people he have never met yet. He made a small courteous bow and took his hat off his head.

"I am Captain Edward Teague, Keeper of the Pirate Code. Welcome to Shipwreck's Cove." He introduced himself. Carrie and Elizabeth looked at each other with small smiles before giving him their curtsy. Norrington was surprised by the polite manner that the pirate showed them and felt awkward when he bowed slightly in return.

"My name is Elizabeth Turner, Will Turner's wife. This is Carrie Lockheart and that is James Norrington. It is a pleasure and an honor to meet you." Elizabeth said. Teague stepped up to her and held her hand before placing a light kiss on it. He then moved on to Carrie and did the same thing.

"Meeting two lovely and beautiful goddesses such as yourselves is an even greater honor for one poor and old man like myself." He said. Carrie giggled as she looked at Jack with a grin.

"He is definitely your father Jack. You both have that uncontrollable urge to charm the ladies." She said. Elizabeth couldn't help but smile while the rest chuckled in agreement. Jack felt his frown grow and grumbled softly and angrily to himself. Teague said nothing about the similarities and acted as if he never heard the comment. He stepped back from the ladies then faced the whole group.

"So, shall we go get that dinner?" No matter how much Jack tried to argue with his father about it, the older man persisted in leading them to one of the less rowdy taverns in the island and sitting them around a round table. It was only when the waitress served them mugs of rum did Jack relent to the offerings of dinner. He quickly took one of the drinks and drank the whole thing greedily then set it down on the table and narrowed his eyes at his father.

"You're paying for my dinner."

"If you want me to Jackie boy." Teauge replied, making Jack's eyes narrow lower. The older man turned to the rest of the group, knowing that he wouldn't get any information about what had happened from his son. "I'll be happy to help you out on your problem, but you have to tell me everything about this whole ordeal you're going through. Especially the story on what's happened to that young lass."

Cornelius once more began his long and exhausting tale of what had happened to him and Marine's parents. He left a lot less details in his story, but managed to keep the main contents organized so Teague would still understand what was being talked about. Carrie told her story about Marine and herself and how they got into the world they were in now. She took on the job of telling the rest of the adventures that the whole group experienced, ending with how Marine's clone managed to sneak up on them by surprise and stole a large part of Marine's soul, leaving her with nothing but a shell of what used to be a bright and energetic Marine. While the storytellers spoke, dinner was served and everyone else ate their meals from time to time. By the time the story was over, dinner had already ended. Jack was busy drinking his 9th bottle of rum and glared at his father.

"And that's the whole bloody story. All we need from you is to give us the name of the person who can bring what's left of her soul out from her." Jack said as he placed the empty bottle down on the table. "That's all we needed." He grumbled as he took another and took a swig. Teague relaxed in his chair and chuckled.

"All right then. Since you want me to give you a name, I'll give it. But there is a condition to my giving you very valuable information. This person does not want me to spread her name much after all, and I'll be in trouble if she finds out that I've referred her to you. Therefore I ask that in return for the name, I join you on your trip to meet this person. That way, you won't have to trouble yourselves in looking for her." He replied. Everyone widened their eyes in disbelief and looked at Jack who spat the last of what he had drank and spluttered at his father.

"What?! But I - you - you can't - I don't believe this." Jack muttered as he placed his head in his hands. Every muscle in his body was tensed up and his hands were twitching, eager to grab something and rip it to shreds. Finally, after controlling most of his rage, he looked at his father in a desperate, upsetting manner. "Why do you want to come along the trip? We can handle looking for this person even without your help. You don't normally leave Shipwreck Cove especially when you have nothing to gain from it so why bother now?" He argued.

"Well it's not everyday that my son suddenly barges into my life after not speaking to me for so many years. I'll let you go with the name and without my presence on this trip of yours if you give me one good reason why you're doing so much for a wench like her. Is she one of your usual women?" Carrie narrowed her eyes as she sharply stood up from her chair.

"Just wait a minute! Weren't you listening to everything we've said? Vanessa is nothing like those women! She's not just some prostitute selling her body to men all the time. She's a strong and great pirate."

"Female pirates are different than men." Teague replied with interest as he looked at Jack's expression. "They can still use their bodies to get money. Maybe this one's left such an impression on you that you want to keep her as one of your favorites, am I right Jackie boy?" Jack said nothing but had a dangerous glint to his eyes. Teague went on casually, smirking as he saw Jack slowly twitch and tense. "You probably want her to stay loyal to you. But as a woman of that profession, you can't stay alive with just one client. So maybe you're doing everything you can to convince her that she only serves you." That was enough for Jack. The pirate took out his cutlass and swung it at his father, who blocked it with his own sword. Everyone got out of their chairs and stared at the two in disbelief.

"Jack!"

"What the hell's wrong with you Jack?! That's your father you're attacking!" Jones cried. Jack gritted his teeth and glared heatedly at the man who was blocking his sword. Neither man yielded to the other so they continued to stand there with their swords pressing against the other.

"Never talk about Marine in that way again." Jack growled. Teague wasn't fazed by Jack's anger at all. In fact, the smile that slowly grew on his face spoke differently.

"So are you going to tell me why you're getting worked up so badly for a single young lass or not?" He asked. Jack paused and slowly dropped his stance while stepping back from his father at the same time. It looked like he was having an internal debate with himself, trying to decide what his answer would be. Then all of a sudden, he sheathed his cutlass with a heavy sigh and turned his back to his father.

"Fine. You can come. We're leaving Shipwreck Cove within an hour so pack up quickly." Jack said before walking away from the tavern. Everyone else looked at each other in an awkward silence. They didn't know what to make of Jack's reaction and his current mood. Finally, Teague stood up and broke the silence.

"Well then, you guys better hurry up and head back to his ship. I'll catch up with you after I fix some things at my home." He gave the group a small bow before walking away from the tavern as well. Still, even after Teague had left, no one moved an inch. It was as if they were all rooted to their spots by invisible hands. They would probably stay still like that for an even longer time when Jones decided to speak up what was probably on everybody's mind.

"What the hell just happened back there?"

* * *

Jack has had his share of the worst moments in his life. There was the time when he became the Chief of a tribe who wanted to throw him down a volcano to 'release' him from his 'mortal' prison. There was also the time when a storm had broken out and tossed all of the barrels of rum they had into the sea. They had to survive months without the alcoholic drink and it drove most of the people aboard his ship mad. Of course there was the time he had been marooned on the island by Barbossa. Then he had to count all the times he had been captured and placed in a prison cell. Another count for his 'execution' at Port Royal. He especially hated the time when Elizabeth and Marine burned up all his good rum the second time he had been marooned. Yes, there were a lot of moments in Jack's life when he wished he was dead or when he felt like he was in the deepest pit of hell.

But none of those could compare to the horror and humiliation he had to face on the Black Pearl with his father on board.

He couldn't stop growling at the large group that had gathered around his father as he held the steering wheel tightly in his hands. Teague was busy telling the group anything and everything about the great Captain Jack Sparrow as a young, little mischievous tot. He didn't think things could get worse when he heard his father telling them a story about his 'accidents' on the bed. Jack gritted his teeth and gripped the steering wheel tighter to the point of almost breaking it in two.

"...when I asked him why his bed was wet, he told me that it wasn't pee. So I asked him 'If it isn't pee, then what is it?' He tells me it's just water. So I told him, 'Since it's just water, I won't wash it. It'll dry and you can use it again.' So for one whole week Jack had to endure the stink of his bed, especially after peeing on it two more times during said week." The men on his crew roared with laughter when Teague was done. Jack thanked the gods that Norrington wasn't around to listen, but he couldn't escape Jones, who was practically by Teague's side every waking moment. He could already imagine the thief blackmailing him into so many things after this adventure was over.

"Oh did I mention the time when he got drunk for the first time?"

"WHAT?! Jack can actually get drunk? This I gotta hear!"

"Well it all started on Jackie boy's 18th birthday, when he decided to act like a man and ordered barrels and barrels of drinks for my crew and himself..." Jack could hear his men make an even bigger uproar with Teague's current tale and closed his eyes, trying to keep his anger in. He wished his men would stop listening, but the ship didn't need a lot of hands to sail it with the wind blowing hard and even if he ordered his men to stop, his father would make sure that they would still hear him talking. Thoughts of how to get rid of his father after hearing the name of the person came to his mind, but his father was just as cunning as he is, and wouldn't give away the name or where they were going. All he gave was a direction, and an assurance of letting them know if they needed to turn to keep track of their course. A sudden tap on his shoulder made him whirl around and glare at the person before him.

"WHAT?" Carrie was taken aback by Jack's actions and was almost tempted to run away. But she had an important message for Jack so she took a deep breath and hoped that the pirate wouldn't get any angrier.

"Uh...Teague said that you're losing the course and to turn 30 degrees to the right." Jack saw the slight look of fear in Carrie's eyes and took deep breaths himself, trying to calm his nerves down. He gave the young blond haired woman a small, very forced smile and nodded.

"Aye, I got ye." As if to emphasize on it, Jack gave the steering wheel a hard tilt. His gaze was focused at what was ahead of him while his mind was trying to block out any and all sounds of his father's presence on his ship. Carrie involuntarily winced when she saw how rough Jack was handling his ship, but said nothing in fear of angering him even further. She decided that if they were to make it to their targeted location all in one piece, they had to deal with the problem. She turned around and headed for the source of Jack's anger. Teauge was wrapping up his story of how Jack got drunk for the first time and was chuckling along with the group when he saw Carrie walking towards him and smiled.

"Well, well. How lovely of you to awe us with your presence love. Did you come to listen to the stories as well?" He asked. "I still have many more stored right here." He added, tapping the side of his head. Carrie saw that all of the men surrounding Teague were grinning from ear to ear, pleased with the stories Jack's father was telling them about his son. Carrie looked up at Teague with a very serious expression on her face.

"I want to talk to you. In private." She added as she looked at all the men crowding around them in curiosity. The humor in Teague disappeared at the sight of Carrie's expression and he gave a slight nod to the young woman to show that he understood. He turned around to face Jack's crew and made shoo-ing gestures at them.

"Go on ye lads! I'll give you more stories some other time." He said. Then he turned back to Carrie with a charming smile. "Well then, what is it lass? Is there something wrong?" He asked. Carrie looked down and fiddled with her fingers for a moment. She didn't know how to ask her question in a way that wouldn't make the older man angry and she was afraid of what would happen if he would become angry. Her eyes glanced at Jack who was still steering the helm harshly then looked back at his father and took a deep breath. All this time Teague stood there and patiently waited for her to speak.

"Why did you have to go with us on this journey just to anger Jack?" She asked. "Is it fun for you to watch your son get angry and act aggressively?" Teague looked at Carrie for a long while without saying anything to her. The young woman closed her eyes and tensed, preparing herself in case Teague would get mad at her. But when she opened one eye to take a look, she saw the same man standing before her with a calm expression on his face. This gave her the courage to ask another question. "Why is Jack so angry with you that he doesn't want to see you or speak to you that badly?" Teague still said nothing as he turned his head to the side and looked at the sea. Carrie thought Teague was not planning to answer her question and was about to press him when he turned his gaze back to her.

"I'm not trying to anger Jack." He began. Just the fact that he didn't call his son by his given nickname made Carrie realize that Teague was speaking to her in a serious manner. "I was just teasin' him. I came along this adventure of yours...because I was curious." Carrie tilted her head a bit, making Teague chuckle. "You know just as much as I do that that boy does not do anything without getting a reward of some sort in return; although there is some good in him as well. For him to simply decide to help this young woman without expecting anything in return...well it just piqued my interest. Who is this woman and what is she to Jackie boy? I wanted to meet this lovely lady everyone's so worried about." He said.

"Get in line bub. Almost everyone on this ship is probably wondering exactly the same thing you are." Carrie replied with a small smile. Teague chuckled again and crossed his arms.

"Is that so?" Both heads turned to face Jack who seemed to be in a less angrier mood than he was before, now that Teague wasn't telling stories and causing the whole crew to blow up in an uproar. Carrie turned her gaze to Teague and saw him still watching his son with a softening gaze, making a small smile slowly creep onto her face.

"You love him...don't you? Even if he's avoiding you and trying not to be in any form of contact with you, you still love him." Teague looked at Carrie and narrowed his eyes at her.

"Love him? Ha! I'm glad that I don't see his annoying little face any longer. It only makes me want to vomit everything I've eaten from the day I was born." Teague scoffed, crossing his arms and looking away like a child being scolded by his parent. Carrie giggled then remembered her previous question and asked it again.

"So what happened between you and Jack? Why are you two fighting with each other that badly?" She asked him. Teague sighed and walked a bit to lean against the railing and gaze beyond the horizon. Carrie followed his movements and leaned against the railing beside him. For a few seconds, she waited to see if the older man would answer her. Then she looked down at the side of the hull and turned a slight tinge of red in embarrassment. "I'm sorry, I feel like I'm forcing you to answer my question. If you don't want to talk about it, it's okay. I understand."

"No, it's all right." Teague told her with a smile. "I was just reminiscing what happened back then..." He chuckled to himself before we went on. "Have you ever heard of The Fountain of Youth?" He asked her. Carrie blinked then nodded.

"Of course. I doubt it if there's someone in the whole world who hasn't heard of that." She replied. Teague looked at her then gave a small sigh.

"For many, many years, all sorts of men have searched high and low and fought great wars against each other for the greatest treasure that man would ever hear of. The gift of immortality is something that many would be willing to risk everything for, even their own lives and the lives of others." He began. "I too have fallen deeply for the stories and the rumors and joined the rest in the quest for the Fountain of Youth. And by an incredible stroke of luck, I did find it." Carrie's eyes were as wide and as large as plates as she stared at Teague incredulously.

"You found the Fountain of Youth?! How? Where? When?" She asked him. Then the most important question came to her head. "Does Jack know that you found it?"

"I found it a long time ago, during one of my adventures somewhere in the Carribean Seas. I had found a map, with the location of a lost island that had sunken into the sea a thousand years ago. I decided to go there and see what kinds of treasures and the like I can find. I ended up finding a strange path under the coral reefs, and went into a hidden cave where I saw a small pond deep within. And that's when I realized that it was the Fountain of Youth. Well as you most likely already know, I took some and left that lost island an immortal."

"That is so cool!" Carrie cried with a grin. "I wish I could drink from the Fountain of Youth. You wouldn't happen to have the map with you, do you?" Teague smiled at her.

"If you drank from the Fountain of Youth, you would probably be younger than you are now. And you'd have to stay in that physical state for the rest of your life. You should probably wait a few years longer before setting off to find it." He said. Then his face took on a graver expression as he added, "Jack asked me the same question a few years ago..." This made Carrie widen her eyes in surprise.

"He did? Then why's he so angry?" Slowly realization dawned on her. She looked back at Teague with a small but sad frown on her face. "You didn't give it to him..." A sad smile came to Teague's face as he nodded to her.

"Yes, when he asked me for the map to the location of the Fountain of Youth, I refused to give it to him. He became angry at me, and that's where it all began. He started to avoid me then after a while he all-together pretended that I never existed." He sighed as he rubbed one side of his face and looked back at the sea. "So there you go. That's the reason why he's so angry at me and why he does his best to avoid me...until now." Carrie couldn't help but feel sorry for the two and pressed further.

"Why didn't you give him the map?"

"...because I didn't want him to get it just yet." He replied. Carrie tilted her head to the side and stared at him in confusion. She was about to voice out her question when Teague spoke once more. "The Fountain of Youth is not something that people can just look for and get at a sudden whim. Receiving the chance of immortality is something that is very priceless, and something that must be fought for to make it worth the wait. If you truly want the greatest treasure of the world...you must prove to the world that you deserve to receive such a grand and priceless prize. That's what I want Jack to do. I want him to work long and hard to get what he wants. That's why I didn't give him that map. To simply give it to him would be destroying that worthiness that he has to deserve immortality."

"So that's why..." Carrie looked down then frowned up at Teague. "If that's the case, then why didn't you just say so? Jack probably thinks you're trying to keep the Fountain of Youth from him. That's why he's so mad at you right now. And since the reason you two aren't getting along very well is because of this misunderstanding, you should talk to him and explain to him everything you just told me. Don't you want to make amends with your son?" She asked.

"Even if I make amends with him, what good will it do me now? I've been living in Shipwreck Cove without him. He's been out on these crazy adventures of him all the time with or without my presence. Were we to forgive each other, nothing would change. He'd still be out there finding the most valuable treasures while I, who has already passed that stage in my life, will continue to stay put and have nothing to do with him whatsoever. Things are better this way lass. Trust me." He said.

"But..."

"That's enough lass. Any further pestering and I might just start getting annoyed at ye." Carrie was shocked to silence and looked down at the floor in embarrassment. Then after a while Teague softened his gaze and looked at her with a mischievous grin on his face. "So, would you like me to tell you the story of how Jack first got seasick on my ship?" Carrie blinked at him in surprise at the sudden change of mood then smiled and giggled in reply to what he said.

* * *

"All right everyone, gather around. We're coming close to our destination now so I think everyone should hear what I have to say before we meet this person." Teague said to the group who were at the galley. This consisted of Jack, Carrie, Elizabeth, Norrington, Will, Jones and Cornelius of course. They crowded around a round table and sat on chairs side by side to face Jack's father. A plate of dried fish and fresh vegetables lay before him and he was eating this while drinking a bottle of rum. Carrie raised an eyebrow when she saw Teague eating and tapped his plate in a curious manner.

"You're just eating lunch now? Everyone had already eaten a few hours ago. What were you doing?" She asked. Teague chewed and swallowed the food in his mouth before he replied.

"I was making last minute adjustments to our meeting." He explained. "It would be better if our arrival was announced rather than by surprise. Especially with me around." He muttered. "Anyway I was writing a letter and sent it to our destination with a messenger bird that I brought along."

"And besides," He added as he drank from his bottle. "Eating during the lunch hour on this ship is nigh impossible. With all the racket your men make, the ugly stench of sweat and the uncomfortable feel of people sitting very close to each other in a crowded galley ruins my appetite." Jack narrowed his eyes at Teague then rolled them at him. Cornelius chuckled as he caught Jack's expression then looked at Teague who was making faces of his own and shook his head in disbelief.

"So old friend, are you going to tell us anything about this mysterious person who has an idea on how to cure Marine's comatose state or what?" Cornelius said to bring back the topic of discussion to the important matter at hand. "It surprises me that there would actually be someone who might have powers to do such a seemingly impossible task." Jack placed his arms on the table and narrowed his gaze at his father.

"I have the exact same thoughts about it. You're not about to tell us that this has all been a silly prank on your part are you?" He asked with a slight hint of warning in his voice. Teague rolled his eyes at Jack and scoffed.

"How could you accuse your own father of lying about such a thing?! Of course everything I've said is true. I would never allow myself to go on such a long and arduous trip just to humiliate and make your life miserable Jackie boy; it's not worth the effort. I can do that as easily without coming along for the ride." He told him with a smug grin. Jack was about to retort back when Carrie suddenly slammed her hands down on the table, jerking everyone in surprise. They all turned their gazes to the blond haired woman who stood up from her chair and glared at the father and son duo.

"That's enough out of you two! If you can't set aside your differences and your petty fight for just a few months then I will not hesitate to throwing you two into one rowboat and leaving you to yourselves. We're not here to fight about something that's already happened in the past. We're here to save Vanessa as soon as possible, and you two arguing with each other is not helping the situation. I'm giving you three seconds to make amends before I get the whole crew to help me do what I threatened to do. I don't care if it's a temporary truce, just do it or else." She said. Jack widened his eyes at Carrie in slight panic.

"Whoah there love, you can't seriously be thinking of doing such a thing! It's called a mutiny for one and my loyal crew would not agree to whatever you say."

"Oh I think I can make them see things my way with a bit of persuasion. Don't you think Elizabeth? Norrington? THREE..."

"I will gladly assist you in sending him off Miss Lockheart." Norrington replied with a grin that was too enthusiastic. Will and Elizabeth sighed but they looked at Jack as if telling him that they agreed to what Carrie was saying. The pirate captain looked at the whole group before glaring and crossing his arms stubbornly.

"You can't toss both of us aboard. He has the location and the name of the person who can save Marine and I...I'm Captain Jack Sparrow! You'll need me if you want to settle this fight between you and your clones."

"I don't need to know anything more about the location or the name of this person since Teague just said that we were close to our destination. All we need to do is go ashore and ask around for a bit. And as for your usefulness on this ship...we'll I'll be the judge of that when that time comes. But I assure you that we'll be fine with or without you by our sides. TWO..."

"Y-y-you can't do this! I'm the Captain of this ship so you have no right to order me around." Jack cried as he stood up and pointed at Carrie. "You! You're just a young inexperienced lass who happened to come upon this adventure by accident! What makes you think that you can handle being in charge of MY ship? I should be the one making the orders and the threats around here." He argued. Carrie remained calm and, to Jack's irritation, smug as she shook her head slowly from side to side and wagged a finger at him.

"ONE..."

"FINE!" Jack growled aloud as he fell down ungracefully to his chair and slumped his shoulders in defeat. "You win. I'll...call a truce with him...for now." He muttered angrily glaring daggers at his father. Carrie looked expectantly at Teague, who shrugged at her and smiled.

"Aye, I'll hold my tongue against him and stay out of his way...for now." The young blond haired woman looked from one man to the other, before sitting down herself and grinning at the whole group.

"Good. I'm glad we got that matter settled." Chuckling in increasing volumes, Cornelius was enjoying the scene that was unfolding before him and slapped Jack in the back when it was finally over.

"Dear god Jack, I've never felt more entertained than I am now. You sure picked the wrong lassies to mess with." He teased before falling back into his laughter. Jones was laughing along with the older man as he pointed and gasped for words at Jack.

"I'm never going to forget this day Jack...it's the first time I've seen you lose your power and control against a young lady!"

"Unfortunately...it's not the first time that this has happened." Jack muttered softly to himself while giving Elizabeth a sidelong glance. With a loud, weary and heavy sigh, he clapped his hands and got everyone's attention back on him. "Now then, as Carrie said, let us get back to more important matters." He looked at his father with slight irritation then caught Carrie's warning look and supressed his urge to lose his temper. "What do we need to know about this person before we meet them?" He asked.

* * *

**Additional Note: **The history that went on between Jack and Teague in the story is my own plotting. If ever anyone would tell me that there is another true history then I apologize for it but I wouldn't change this event in my story for future purposes. There's a reason why I got Teague to tell the story of how his relationship with Jack came to be. (For those of you who still don't get what I'm talking about, then I'll just say it: There might be a sequel to this story if ever I feel up to it and if ever there would be people who would want to read it. So keep me inspired by your lovely reviews! XD)


	32. A Dangerous Decision

_**"Ah but Jack, there is always another choice in decision making. You just thought of choosing the one that shall benefit you the most." - The Witch Doctor**_

**Chapter 32 - A Dangerous Decision**

Carrie, Teauge, Cornelius, Elizabeth, Will, Norrington and Jones all stood scattered around the small room waiting for the dark skinned woman, who was pacing across a bed, to say something. When they had arrived on the little shack at Pelegosto Island a few minutes ago, the woman was already there, waiting for them to enter and place Marine's still body on the bed she had prepared for her. Then without another word she began to inspect her and pace around in thought. Everyone else watched her movements closely and were starting to become restless and confused. Jack on the other hand was leaning against the wall in a corner of the room with his arms crossed and his mood dark.

When he had first heard of the name of their supposed helper, it took everything in Jack not to burst into a blind rage at everything and anything that stood before him. At the same time he was kicking himself angrily for not thinking of the person in the first place. He gritted his teeth and narrowed his eyes even lower as he remembered their conversation back at the galley a few weeks ago.

_"WHAT?! You mean it was HER all along?"_ Jack cried as he stood up and slammed his fists on the table. _"You KNEW it was that woman that we needed!"_

_"Why yes...I'm surprised you didn't thought of her immediately. That was why I was partly wondering why you came to me seeking for someone to help the lass."_ Teague replied calmly. Jack swiveled his gaze to Cornelius and clenched his hands into tight fists.

_"Did YOU know who he was talking about?"_ The older man raised his hands in front of Jack defensively.

_"Hey don't look at me that way. I had no idea who he was going to mention. When you asked me to help I told you that I had no idea who can help and that your father might have an idea on who can help us. That was the truth!"_ He argued. Jack rubbed his forehead roughly, trying to calm his anger and at the same time punish himself for being ridiculously slow.

_How could I have forgotten her? I should have known she's the only person who can help now. If I had only remembered, I wouldn't be stuck with...him. _Jack turned his gaze to his father who had an amused smile on his face and gave a loud sigh of frustration. _Bloody hell!_

Now the dark skinned, eccentric woman moved away from the bed and made her way towards everyone around the room. She looked at each one with an inspective, curious gaze before her eyes stopped and settled on Carrie.

"You have the strongest bond with this woman...am I right?" The woman asked in a strange accent. Carrie stood as still as a statue and began to stammer and blabber random things as she answered the woman's question.

"Y-y-yes that's right! I'm her best friend. W-w-we've known each other since we were still young kids. And even though we're 4 years apart we're still pretty close and to me she's like an older sister that I never had before." Carrie said. The dark skinned woman chuckled as she placed a hand on her shoulder.

"Yes, yes I understand what you're trying to say. You don't have to act so nervous around me, I will not bite you or curse you. Relax and introduce yourselves to me." She told her calmly. "I am Tia Dalma, a simple witch doctor in Pelegosto Island."

"I'm Carrie Lockheart, best friend of Vanessa; the one who's on the bed right now. These are the rest of my friends who are trying to help her as well. That's Elizabeth and Will Turner, husband and wife, Jones Westley, James Norrington, Cornelius Gashnet, and - "

"My, my what a pleasant surprise this is. To find father and son standing together in my room at the same time." Tia said, interrupting Carrie as she made her way to Teague. "It has been a very long time Teague. How have you been these past few years?" The older man took Tia's hand in his and pressed his lips lightly on the back of it. Then he looked up at her with a charming smile.

"I'm doing perfectly fine Tia, thank you for asking. As for my no good, no-brained son..." Teague turned his gaze to Jack who glared back with intensity. Tia chuckled as she walked towards Jack and looked at him from top to bottom.

"Ah yes, Jack Sparrow..." She pronounced the r's longer, making her sound like a contented cat. "It's been just as long, but you are still the same old Jack Sparrow that I met. You haven't changed a bit, have you?" Jack's glare fell as he looked back at Tia with a smile similar to his father's.

"Tia Dalma. It is quite a surprise. Of course I haven't changed! And it looks like you're still as beautiful and...eccentric as ever." He ended with an afterthought. Tia smiled at him then turned around to look at Marine. Afterwards she looked at the rest of the group inside the shack with a serious expression on her face.

"I believe it's time we discuss the main purpose of your visit to my humble abode. Time is short for this young woman and it is fortunate that you brought her here now. Had you come here a day later, she would have been lost to the conscious world forever." Tia began, causing everyone to widen their eyes in surprise. "Teague has sent me a letter a few weeks ago, telling me of the current state of the young woman and how she came to be in that state. You are right to assume that the remaining soul left in this woman is enough to wake her up from her sleep. But, as I'm sure you've already discussed, there is a chance that when we awaken her that she would not be the same person that you all know. There is also the possibility that we would accidentally kill her by mistake. Despite this, are you all willing to go through with pulling out her soul into consciousness?" Everyone except Teague and Norrington nodded without hesitation. Tia Dalma nodded back at them then smiled at the group.

"I see. Then there is one last matter that we need to discuss before I help you bring her back..." Jack was about to open his mouth and say something but Tia lifted a finger in the air, immediately silencing the pirate. "But alas, time is short for our young friend. To discuss and negotiate for the price of my assistance will just waste our valuable time. Therefore I give you three choices, and you must pick one now. First, I will save her soul and you will pay the price no matter how difficult, dangerous and long it takes. Second, you pay the price within today before I help. The last choice would be to give up and let her disappear forever. For whatever reasons and arguments you present, I will not agree to anything less than what I asked for."

"What is the price you want?" Jack asked. "Gold? A jewel? Cursed treasure? I have lots of those on my ship." Tia shook her head and smiled sadly at Jack.

"My price is a sea snake's tooth. And I don't want just any sea snake's tooth. I want you to get the it from the largest sea snake that exists. I believe a certain pirate has acquired control over it. If you give me this, then I will help your friend. Or I can help your friend first before you set off to get my payment. Whether you choose one or the other, it will still be a difficult task." She explained. Jones widened his eyes and stood up from his chair in a rush.

"What?! You want us to fight off that huge monster and get its tooth? That's ridiculous! That's suicide! And you expect the possibility of us getting it for you in less than a day? That's madness!"

"That's the only price I'm giving you." Tia interjected, making the thief frown angrily at her. "You must understand that calling the soul from a body that has fallen into a deep sleep is a very dangerous and tiring feat. A dangerous price must be demanded for such a dangerous task." She added. Jack looked at Carrie who set her lips into a thin line and nodded at him. Looking at the rest of the group, he saw that most of them had similar conceding expressions. When he saw that it was no use trying to discuss the matter further, he gave a heavy sigh and looked at Tia resignedly.

"Aye Tia. We have no choice but to agree to the first." The dark skinned woman's smile suddenly changed into a very sly one.

"Ah but Jack, there is always another choice in decision making. You just thought of choosing the one that shall benefit you the most." Jack pouted at the witch doctor and narrowed his eyes at her. The dark skinned woman chuckled slightly before making her way deeper into the shack. Everyone could hear sounds of things being moved aside as they waited for Tia to appear before them again. When she did, she stood before them carrying two empty buckets.

"There is no time to lose. You must all help me prepare the room for the awakening. Quickly now!"

* * *

As the sky turned dark and the sun began to set west, Tia and the rest of the group inside the little shack found themselves standing around the main room after 3 hours' worth of going to the lake 10 miles away by boat. The dark skinned witch doctor had ordered the men to bring the buckets to and fro the lake and her home to fill up a bathtub to the brim. Since there were only two buckets and one boat, it took then quite some time before they could finish their task. By the time Tia deemed it ready for the ritual to begin, the sun had already gone down and the stars and the moon were shining bright in the cloudless sky.

"We don't have much time left. We have to start waking her soon." Tia told everyone, looking around the whole room and pausing to stare at each one individually. Then her eyes rested on Jack and Will. "I need you two to come with me to the bathtub. The rest of you have to stay here and wait." She explained. Carrie widened her eyes and stepped up in an outrage.

"What? No way! I won't stand here and wait while you risk your life trying to save my best friend. I want to be there for her as well." She cried angrily. "Let me help!" Tia fell silent as she regarded the young blond haired woman. Her face held on an expressionless look as she slowly walked towards the younger woman.

"I didn't choose both Jack and Will for no reason lass." She began. "I choose them for their strength and their character. If things were to go wrong, I am confident that both Jack and Will are the ones who will be capable of making a calm decision quickly. I know how close you are to this woman and how much you want to help, but I'm afraid that you would only be in our way." She ended. Carrie froze and stared at Tia Dalma in shock. She opened her mouth to say something against the other woman but she couldn't think of anything to say that would hold strong against what Tia said. In the end, the young blond haired woman looked down at the ground in defeat. When Tia was sure that Carrie was finished arguing, she looked at Jack and Will once more.

"I shall go on ahead while the two of you mentally prepare yourselves for what is to come and what might happen during the ritual. When you're ready, I want you to bring the girl into the bathtub." Tia said. Jack nodded to Tia to let her know that they understood and watched as the dark skinned witch doctor left the room. Afterwards, Jack turned his gaze to Carrie, who was still staring down at the ground and was trembling slightly.

"Carrie..." No answer came from the blond haired girl, but Jack could catch a soft sob that escaped before she fell back into silence. He gave a soft sigh then walked towards her. To Carrie's surprise, Jack held one shoulder with his hand and held her chin with the other, lifting it up to face him. His gaze was warm and soft as he wiped away the tears that were slowly falling from her face and gave her a reassuring smile.

"Don't worry love, dry those tears of yours. I promise I'll get her back, no matter what happens." He said gently. "Nothing wrong is going to happen to the ritual with Will and Captain Jack Sparrow around and before you know it, Marine will come barging into this room, better than ever." His strong, convicting words calmed Carrie down a little and made her urge to cry slowly fade away. She stepped back, away from Jack, and wiped her eyes dry with the back of her hand before looking at Jack with a determined expression on her face.

"You better!" He gave her his trademark grin and turned around at the feel of a hand on his shoulder.

"I don't know what's going to happen to you and I don't want to think about the possibility of something bad befalling you guys during this thing..." Jones began, gripping Jack's shoulder tighter as he went on. "So get back here and make sure that everyone else is still alive alright Jack?" Jack slapped Jones' back playfully and nodded to him in understanding.

"Savvy, mate." Elizabeth went up to the two men next and embraced them both one at a time, surprising Jack for a moment.

"Good luck to you both. And take care of yourselves and Marine as well." Norrington, Cornelius and Teague looked at Jack and Will in silence, but their eyes were enough for the two to know of their immense support and hope for the success of what they were about to do. Jack looked at Will, who looked back at Jack, and had a slightly apprehensive grin on his face.

"Well whelp, I guess we have to go. Time is of the essence." He said. "I'll carry Marine." He added. Will nodded as he waited for Jack to get Marine. The pirate stood on the side of the bed Marine lay on and brushed away a loose strand of hair that was obstructing her face.

_Hold on for a while longer Marine...we're coming to save you._

He gently carried her into his arms bridal-style and made his way to Will who was standing by the door and holding it out for Jack. The two men's eyes met and held each other's gazes for one brief moment before Jack went past the other man and walked towards the room where Tia was together with the bathtub. Will closed the door behind him and followed after the pirate. Together the two men entered the small and cramped room where Tia was and watched as the dark skinned woman turned to regard them. The room was littered with long candles, barely giving any light for them to see. The bathtub was filled with the water they had collected from the lake; in the light, it looked similar to a black abyss. Jack couldn't help but gulp nervously as Tia looked at him.

"Walk further in and place her gently into the tub." She ordered. Jack gave Will a quick glance before walking towards the bathtub and placing Marine into the water, holding onto her head to make sure that it stayed above the water. The witch doctor then turned to Will and pointed to the bathtub.

"I want you to support her instead of Jack. Make sure that you do everything as I say and never let go of her while she's in the water." Tia said. Will nodded and quickly made his way to Jack, who reluctantly let go and stood up once Will had a good hold on Marine's body. Then he looked at Tia with a slightly wary gaze as she gave him his order. "Let me explain to you first what is going to happen. I have discovered that Marine is most attuned to the element of water, for this is how she came to this world if I had heard right. Now to bring her out, we must submerge her whole self in the water, bringing what I would call 'temporary death' on her as a result, and call on to the soul within her."

"You're going to kill her?!" Jack cried incredulously. Tia remained calm and composed as she continued her explanation.

"Spiritual calling is easier when the person is dead, or close to death. This is how we're going to bring out the soul residing deep within her. In order to do that, I must meditate myself and go into her mind. But there is danger for both her and myself, since if I were to make a wrong move, I would be stuck within her mind and she would never awaken from her deep sleep and die from drowning. If I succeed though, it would not be enough. To call on the soul and bring it out is only to give her shell of a body life, especially since we gave her temporary death. In order for her to truly awaken and live, when I suddenly fall unconscious, I want you to bring her back to life by any means possible. Or else, even if she was alive, she would still die from drowning." Jack stared at Tia and looked at Marine's body.

"Are you sure there isn't any other way to do this?" Jack asked worriedly. "What if I couldn't bring her back to life? I...I don't know what to do with myself if she dies because I failed to save her."

"I have warned you of the danger to what we are about to do. Not many have the power and the knowledge to call on the soul of a person. You should be thankful that you are given this opportunity to save her. And if you can recall, I have warned you about the possibility of her death. But if you still wish not to continue then tell me now before it is too late. For once I begin, there will be no turning back." Jack looked at Will who helplessly looked back at Jack. It was obvious that he had no intention of making the grave decision so in the end, it was up to him to decide. Jack closed his eyes and took a deep breath as he felt a very large and heavy pressure fall on top of his shoulders. His usual arrogance was gone; now, there was nothing in him but fear, apprehension and determination.

"No Tia, I want us to go on. If I choose to stop this, there would be no more hope for Marine. I'd rather grab that little chance than not take any risks at all." He said. Tia's lips curved up into a small smile as she gave a curt nod to Jack then turned her gaze to Will who was patiently waiting for her next orders.

"Very well then. Let us begin. Gently sink her under the water and keep her there. Make sure that you're still holding her throughout the whole process so it would be easier to take her out of the water when I'm finished." She said. Will nodded and reluctantly, but slowly, dropped Marine's body until even her head was under the water while the witch doctor made her way to the other side of the bathtub and kneeled before it. Tia took a deep breath, mentally preparing herself for what she was about to do, then dipped her hands into the water and grabbed hold of Marine's own cold hands. She closed her eyes and meditated, feeling everything around her slowly disappear until they faded away into the background like a dark fog. A strong pull led her to some direction she has no knowledge of, but she let it lead her on instead of struggling against it. Slowly, but surely, she could sense the air in her surroundings change into unfamiliar territory; finally she was within Marine's mind.

And so, the awakening begins.

* * *

Time passed slowly for Jack as he stood there and waited for his turn to do his part in the ritual. He turned his gaze towards Will, who seemed to be struggling with his position by the tub while making sure that he still had a good grip on Marine's body. He wanted to offer to hold her while the other man rests for a few minutes, but Tia said nothing about letting them switch places so he couldn't offer in fear of doing something wrong. In fact, he felt like he was already doing something wrong just by standing there and waiting for Tia to suddenly fall into unconsciousness. He felt his whole body wanting to jump and spin around in anticipation of what he was supposed to do.

"How long is this bloody ritual going to take?" He muttered in irritation as he crossed his arms and heaved a heavy sigh.

"You can't really rush these things Jack." Will said as he looked over his shoulder at the pirate. "I mean, it's already a very delicate situation as it is. We don't need to make thing any harder for Tia by pressuring her." He added.

"I know that! But really...if she isn't going to even try to hurry up then we might not even make it to her soul in time." Will sighed as he watched Jack have an internal struggle within himself and felt slightly sympathetic to the other man.

"Everything will be all right...right Jack?" He asked. That stopped the pirate from complaining further about the situation. Jack stared at Will as the blacksmith looked at Marine then at the hands that somehow held her to their world both literally and figuratively. "When Tia's done her part, you will bring her back to life won't you? So it doesn't matter if Tia's taking too long. In the end, you'll be there to save her won't you?" Jack narrowed his eyes at Will.

"Of course I'll save her! Captain Jack Sparrow can do anything he puts his mind to and will not fail in whatever duties he has to fulfill." He said determinedly. "Rest assured, she will come back whelp. Stop being such a eunuch and stop complaining about things going wrong. You have the greatest pirate ever to sail the Caribbean Seas standing beside you as your ally so everything will turn out all right."

"Right, absolutely. How could I have been so blind?" Will said as he turned his gaze away from Jack to keep him from seeing a small smile lift up from his face.

_At least that got his morale and confidence in himself back. Now...if only Tia Dalma could hurry up and finish this ritual before my back snaps in two from holding onto this position._

More time passed with Will holding Marine's body, Tia Dalma holding to her hands and kneeling in that meditative state and Jack standing by, waiting for Tia to fall unconscious. While he was waiting, he began to look around the bathroom, at the candles that were slowly beginning to shrink from being lit up for quite some time and at the only window built at the opposite side of the door that was barely giving them the moon's light. He gave a soft sigh as he realized with disappointment that there was nothing interesting to look at but the people who were together with him. He glanced to one side of the bathtub and noticed Will slowly trembling from kneeling and hovering by the side of the tub with his body hunched to make it easier to hold onto Marine.

"Will...are you going to be all right?" Jack asked with a hint of concern. The young blacksmith looked at Jack and smiled reassuringly.

"Don't worry about me Jack. I'll be fine. You should just concentrate on what you're going to do and keep an eye on Tia so you can save Marine when it's time to do so." He replied. Jack gave him a curious look before sighing at him then letting the issue go. If he was going to insist on giving himself a hard time then Jack wouldn't bother arguing with him. When his gaze went back to Tia and the bathtub, he widened his eyes in surprise and panic. Tia had began to sway from side to side as if drunk, making the water in the bathtub create rough, splashing waves that spilled over to the ground. Will was just as startled by Tia's sudden movement and had almost dropped his hold on Marine. He looked at Jack worriedly who narrowed his eyes and shook his head as he watched the witch doctor intently.

"Keep still Will. Don't forget what Tia told us to do. Whatever happens don't let Marine go until Tia's fallen unconscious ." Jack ordered. Will looked at Tia with concern but said nothing and continued to do as Jack said. The dark skinned witch doctor went on swaying, then muttered something under her breath before releasing her grip on Marine's hands and falling to the side of the bathtub. Jack felt his muscles tense up as he watched Tia fall down but did nothing to help her out; instead he looked at Will ernestly. "Now Will! Take her out of the bathtub." Will nodded at him as he heaved Marine's body out of the tub and placed her on the floor, creating a small puddle on the ground she was lying on. Jack rushed towards them and kneeled beside Marine.

"You go and help Tia Dalma. I'll take care of things here." He said. Will nodded at him as he left the two alone to see to the other woman on the other side of the tub. Jack then leaned down to place his ear to Marine's mouth. When he couldn't sense her breathing, he checked the pulse on her neck and felt a slight and slow beating. His spirits were raised as he opened Marine's mouth and closed it with his as he gave her air. He stopped after a few seconds to check if she was breathing before doing it again. Then when it still didn't work he placed the heels of his hands to her chest and pushed hard against it.

"Come on Marine! Don't die on me now. Wake up." Jack muttered as he stopped pressing and repeated the first step of CPR. His hands began to tremble and he began to breathe rapidly as he realized that Marine was still as lifeless as before. He placed his hands on her chest and began to push again. It hadn't been this hard before, when he did the same thing to her the first time they met each other. After giving her air and pushing against her chest once, she had immediately coughed out the water and woke up from her unconsciousness. Even when he did it again the second time she almost drowned, it had only taken him a few minutes before he was sure that Marine was going to be all right. He sensed someone come up from behind him, and heard him say the words that were running through his mind.

"Are we too late? She looks pale and cold." Jack swiveled his head around and glared at Will.

"No! We aren't too late! We got her out of the water just as Tia had fallen unconscious. She's probably pale because she almost died and she's probably cold because she was under the water for too long. She has to be alive. She just has to be." He argued. He began performing CPR again and gritted his teeth in frustration. "You can't die you hear me?! Not after everything I had to go through to get to this point. Wake up Marine! MARINE!" Will reached out to Jack and was about to try and stop him but felt a hand on his shoulder and looked back in surprise to see Tia standing behind him.

"Are you all right Tia? You should sit down and rest for a bit." He suggested. The witch doctor smiled at him before shaking her head in reply to his question.

"I'm all right now. I'm more worried about them." She said, gazing at Jack who had become desperate in his movements. He stopped, exhausted from non-stop pressing and pumping of air, and hung his head low. He clenched his hands so tightly that his knuckles turned white and a slight amount of blood began to drip down from his palm. His head lifted up to look at both Will and Tia who were staring back at him with sympathy. It pissed him off to see such looks on them and he narrowed his eyes at their expressions before going back to doing CPR as if he had never stopped to take a break.

"That's enough Jack, it's over." Tia spoke softly. Jack vigorously shook his head.

"No. I won't stand for this! It isn't over until I say it's over." He growled. "Marine's going to live. I just know she will. She won't die through something as simple and pathetic as this. She's been through worse trials and obstacles than this. I have to help bring her back." Will closed his eyes and looked away, having had enough of watching Jack's desperate attempt to save Marine. He didn't like seeing Jack that way, and he hoped to never see him that way ever again. Jack finally dropped his hands to his sides and pressed his face on Marine's stomach.

"Don't die Marine! There are people who won't forgive you if you did. And you still have to take care of Carrie before she gets beaten by her clone. She needs you Marine..." And after a while, he realized that it wasn't only Carrie who needed Marine to stay alive. After everything that's happened, after everything that both he and Marine had been through, he realized that he wanted her to stay alive and be with him longer. He wanted Marine to be there to fight back with him whenever he teased her or flirted with her. He wanted her to be there with him whenever he went on one of his adventures for treasure because he knew that she would never think of stealing more than what was agreed upon nor would she step down and run away from a battle like a coward. He wanted her to be there to balance the situation at hand by being serious when he wasn't. He wanted her to be there to keep him entertained and alert at all times. He especially wanted and needed someone whom he could trust with his own life, and he realized that among all of his closest friends, she was the only one he would trust to such an extent.

Will went past Jack and kneeled on the side of Marine opposite the pirate. Jack made no sign that he noticed Will and still didn't move from his position. Wiping the drops of water on Marine's face, the young blacksmith gave a heavy and sad sigh as he checked her pulse. Touching her scared him a little since it reminded him of just how dead cold she was. But while trying to look for a beat, he caught a slight movement from the corner of his eye and froze. Another glance proved that he hadn't been imagining it; though it was slight, he could see that Marine's chest had risen just the slightest bit. He looked up at Jack and didn't know whether to laugh, cry or just jump around and scream with joy. But the rational side of his brain told him to let Jack know first.

"Jack! Jack it's Marine. She's breathing. I don't know how we did it, but I can see her chest rising up and down. We did it Jack, she's alive!" He cried. The pirate stared at Will incredulously then looked down at Marine to find that her face, though it was still pale, had changed its expression into a slightly uncomfortable one. Now that Will had mentioned it, he could see her breathing slowly and trembling slightly from the cold, and somehow he could sense the different aura in her; something more alive. He couldn't help make a grin that reached up to his ears as he straightened his back and laughed as loudly as he could.

"I don't believe it. She really is alive!" He looked at Will who was smiling back at him cheerfully. Tia gave a sigh of relief then smiled as she walked closer to the group, glad of the results of their venture. She looked at Marine's still unconscious body then at Will and Jack whose gloomy, passive moods had lifted at the moment they discovered her alive.

"She must be a very interesting woman...to have affected so much people in her life." She spoke to herself. Seeing that neither Will nor Jack were going to stop smiling and laughing at one another anytime soon, she stepped up towards them.

"This is not the time to be merry and celebrate. The task is not quite finished yet." She told them, making their heads turn to her. "We still have to wait and see how she will react to her awakening, and see to her no matter what happens. Bring her back to the main room." Jack was the one who carried Marine's body in his arms, glad to feel the warmth that was beginning to flow through her whole body. Then together, the three people left the messy bathroom and made their way back to where the rest of the group was, eager to give them the good news.

However...it still remained to be unseen whether that would be the only good news they will receive. Only time will tell.


	33. At A Loss

**AN: **I'm finally back to working on the story! I'm really sorry for the long wait. I've been busy. XD Thanks to those who are still reading my story. And I especially thank XShadowCatX for always reviewing and for being an avid reader of this story. I won't take more of your time then. Enjoy the chapter and read and review when you can.

* * *

_**"Jack and the others will not like this." - Edward Teague  
**_

**Chapter 33 - At A Loss**

No one could have slept a wink that night, as everyone waited for the awakening of Marine. Tia had forbidden anyone to go into the room where Marine slept, telling them that to crowd over Marine in her unbalanced state was a dangerous thing to do. And so the group stayed outside, right beside the door to the small room, waiting for Tia to come out together with Marine.

Carrie turned her gaze to the window inside the room and stared at the dark and cloudy sky. There was no moon in sight and it wasn't clear enough for her to see the stars. She could feels her insides eating her up with the anticipation and the impatience. Nonetheless she stayed where she was and pressed her lips together tight. Jack seemed to be sharing similar feelings with Carrie as he paced back and forth a meter of the room. His eyes were narrowed low and he clasped his hands tightly behind his back. The rest were scattered about the room, waiting just like Carrie and Jack for any news on their unconscious friend.

As the time passed by, Cornelius came out from the kitchen door with a tray of mugs. He passed by each person and offered a mug of tea that he had brewed. When he stood in front of Jack to offer him the drink, the pirate frowned at it.

"I'd prefer rum to this...drink." He muttered.

"I doubt that it would be the best drink for you at the state you're currently in. This will help you stay awake better." Cornelius countered. The pirate's frown grew grimmer but with a reluctant raise of his hand, he took the mug from the older man and took a sip, making a face as he did. Elizabeth placed a hand to her mouth and giggled.

"It really is a rare sight to see you drink something that doesn't contain any sort of alcohol in it." She commented. Jack turned to face the young blond haired woman and grinned.

"Well that is very understandable love, since you don't see drinking all the time. Why don't we go back to my cabin at the Pearl and see what else I drink?" He replied with a wink. Will narrowed his eyes at Jack and instinctively placed an arm around his newlywed wife.

"I won't allow you to drink with my wife Sparrow!" He said. "Go and try looking for someone else to drink with."

"Would you like to?" Jack offered with a knowing, smug smile. The young blacksmith narrowed his eyes lower and tightened his arm around Elizabeth.

"After what happened the last time we drank together? No thank you." Elizabeth turned a curious, questioning gaze at her husband but Will pretended not to notice and continued to glare at Jack.

"A shame." Jack muttered as he shook his head from side to side with mock regret. "Perhaps the Commodore would like to take up my offer of a drink? After all, I still haven't seen you drunk." He turned his gaze to Norrington who had an even darker, angrier look compared to Will's. Carrie couldn't resist, and spoke up with a large grin on her face.

"Believe it or not, in my world, the story doesn't end with Jack getting back his Black Pearl. It continues on with more adventures and stuff. And in one of your adventures, Norrington DOES get drunk." She explained. Norrington had a disbelieving look in his eyes while Jack felt even more cheerful than ever.

"Really now? Well then, no point trying to avoid something that will eventually happen in the future. Come on o'l Norry. Drown in rum together with me and just let it all go!"

"I'm sure you'd love for that to happen wouldn't you pirate?" Norrington spat angrily. "But I haven't fallen that low yet. I might not have the power and prestige I had before, but I still have my pride as a man of his majesty. For as long as I live I will never become a drunkard like yourself."

"But if Carrie is right, you already have. So there's no point in making a promise you can't keep." Jack spoke up. The former Commodore clenched his hands into very tight fists and was about to lose his temper when Carrie stepped forward and placed her hands on her hips.

"Even after all this time you two are still acting like children. Does everything that has happened to us for the past few months mean nothing to any of you?" She asked them. Norrington chose to look away and stay quiet while Jack turned his gaze to Carrie.

"Well now, let's see..." He was suddenly interrupted by the sound of the door opening. They all turned their heads towards the source and saw Tia come out of the small room. It was too crowded in the room, so everyone was forced to keep from suddenly standing up or moving towards the witch doctor. Jack was the first to voice out his question, the same one that was running through everyone's minds.

"Is she awake?" The dark skinned woman shook her head in reply.

"She is still asleep. And you all ought to be as well. Look at you! You all look like the living dead." She said. "You should follow the example of Teague and take a rest. You'll see your friend awake when it's time for her to be awake. I see one of you has already done that." She added, gazing at her table. Everyone else turned their heads around and saw Jones's head lying against his arms. In the silence they could hear the soft sound of his snoring. Carrie frowned at the thief before she looked back at Tia.

"But I want to be the first one to speak to her when she wakes up." She muttered sadly. Tia raised an eyebrow as she looked around.

"And as for the rest?" All she got in reply were half-muttered mumbles and strange, covered-up sounds coming from the rest of the group in the room. A sigh escaped her lips before she crossed her arms over her chest.

"You all ought to go to sleep before I make you fall asleep. It will do much good for everyone." She said.

"And how are you planning on doing that, may I ask?" Jack asked. The corner's of Tia's lips lifted into a mischievous smile, causing Jack to swallow a small lump in his throat in nervousness.

"I have my ways..." She left it at that. Jack knew Tia Dalma better than the rest of the group. The fact that they were in her territory, with all the weird things hanging about the ceiling and the things in the jars that lined up a shelf, made the threat seem scarier. Even without any more words said, the pirate captain knew that Tia's threat was real. He clapped his hands and had a very abnormally large grin on his face.

"Well then, I believe we should all follow Tia's advice and get some sleep while we still can. After all, once Marine wakes up we're going to be moving about and working hard to pay back Tia's price, not to mention deal with the clones who are still after us even as we speak. Now now Carrie love, it's not the time for arguments and such. You heard our dear friend Tia. If we don't go to sleep now she'll make us sleep. And that's not a very good thing to look forward to. Need I remind you that she is a witch doctor in a house filled with all her creepy-crawly things. Best not to argue." Within minutes, he had everyone standing up and making their way to a spot in Tia's home where they could sleep. Tia couldn't help but chuckle softly to herself as she watched the group move about and prepare to go to sleep.

* * *

"Teague, wake up." Jack's father grumbled and groaned as he half-opened his eyes to see a bright shaft of sunlight streaming from the window. He turned his head to the side and stared at the one responsible for the sudden interruption of his sleep. He blinked twice, getting rid of the sleep in his eyes before he saw the clear image of Tia Dalma standing before him. He sat up on the makeshift bed he made on the floor and looked at the dark skinned woman expectantly.

"What is it?"

"She's awake." That caught Teague's attention immediately.

"She is?" After a moment's thought, "Do the others know about this?" The straight and silent expression on Tia's face told him the answer. "Why haven't you told any of them? And why call me of all people?"

"You'll see when you meet her." Tia replied before making her way towards Marine's temporary sleeping quarters. His curiosity piqued, Teague stood up from the ground and followed Tia slowly. He took a look around him as he walked, and saw that everyone was sleeping soundly and scattered about the room. He had known that the group had tried to stay awake for as long as they could and wasn't surprised to find each one knocked out for the time being. He stopped by the door and entered as quietly as he could. Tia was standing a few meters from him while in front of her was a young black haired woman who looked back with ocean blue eyes. Teague could see from the way she kept looking around and couldn't focus on one point that there was something wrong.

"Can you speak lass?" Tia asked. The young woman looked at Tia upon hearing the question then saw Teague coming in and looked at him, tilting her head to the side in slight confusion. The dark skinned woman glanced to see Teague before placing her focus back on the female pirate. "That is Edward Teague, Jack Sparrow's father. Do you remember Jack Sparrow?" Upon hearing the name, Marine pressed her hands to the sides of her head and began to whine in pain. Tia sighed as she finally turned to look at the other man.

"It is just as I feared. She is alive, but her memories of everything has been taken away from her, together with a part of her soul. Now she is nothing but a young child. A strange and sick child at that. She cannot function like a normal human being with what's left of her." Tia explained. "What's worse is anything or anyone that reminds her of herself causes her pain. I do not understand why this is so." Teague looked back at Marine who was staring off into space, then frowned at Tia.

"Jack and the others will not like this."

"That is why I called you first." Tia said. "Because out of everyone, only you and I are able to stand by her without causing her such pain." Teague fell silent as he took another look at Marine. Then he looked back at Tia.

"Isn't there anything we can do? Those kids will really be upset when they find out what's happened."

"What are you talking about?" At the sound of a new voice both Tia and Teague turned their gazes around and saw Carrie standing by the door and looking at them sleepily. "What happened to Vanessa?"

"Carrie, you mustn't come in." Tia began. Carrie narrowed her eyes in anger.

"Why not? She's awake already isn't she? Why won't you let me see her?" With a look of determination she walked forward and tried to get past the two adults. Teague held her back and tried to keep her from going any further.

"Carrie, listen. Your friend is not in a very good condition to see you right now."

"What the hell are you talking about?! I can handle anything that I see there as long as I know that Marine is alive and okay! It's not fair that the two of you can see her while you won't let me, her best friend, go in and see how she's doing."

"You can handle it, but Marine can't." Teague replied. Carrie froze and looked at the older man in confusion.

"What are you talking about? What do you mean she can't handle seeing me?"

"We should discuss this somewhere else." Tia said. "Teague, I would like you to stay here and keep an eye on the girl. I'll go and explain everything to the rest." Teauge nodded in reply and watched both women walk out of the room. He turned his attention back to Marine and sitting on a chair nearby, looked at her with slight interest.

"Well then...let's see what my boy sees in you." He muttered.

Outside, Carrie made her way to one of the unoccupied chairs and sat down with her arms stubbornly crossed over her chest while Tia went about waking everyone up from their deep slumbers. It took quite some time to have everyone wide awake since they had only slept for a few hours or so. When Jones woke up, he yawned loudly and rubbed his eyes before he focused himself on the matter at hand.

"So has our sleeping princess waken up from her beauty sleep?" He asked.

"Yes, she has waken up and is physically well. Teague is in the room with her right now." Tia replied. Jack raised an eyebrow at this, having caught on Tia's unspoken words.

"Physically well? I take it that there's something wrong with her mentally then." Tia closed her eyes and slowly nodded in reply.

"I've warned you all before, that when Marine wakes up from unconsciousness, there is a chance that she will wake up not truly as herself. That is the case presently. She has no memory of herself and seems to be having a hard time functioning properly. Meaning she is like a young baby without a mind of her own. She could not speak and has a hard time focusing on one thing for a long time." She began.

"If that's the only problem with her then why won't you allow me to go and see her?" Carrie asked.

"But that isn't the only problem facing Marine." Tia countered. "I had attempted to call her by her name, but when I did she began to hold her head in pain. Like trying to remember any familiar words or persons was painful to her. It was the same when I mentioned Jack Sparrow's name. I have concluded that making her remember anything is dangerous to her health and therefore none of you are allowed to go near her to prevent her from trying to recall memories." Everyone widened their eyes in surprise at Tia's announcement.

"But if we're going to do as you say, how are we going to get her to fight her clone?" Jones asked. "In fact, how are we going to get her to do anything she needs to do?" Tia fell silent at that. Carrie could feel tears forming in her eyes as she slumped her shoulders in defeat.

"No...this can't be happening...we can't lose here. At this rate her clone will surely win, even if she loses in everything else. What are we going to do Jack?" She asked, turning her gaze to the pirate. Even Jack was at a loss as to what to say to give comfort to her and to everyone else in the room. He had no idea what they should do at a time like this. He closed his eyes and tried to think as he paced to and fro the room.

"First of all, we should keep her here where it's safe and away from the clone's reach." Jack began. "Then aside from getting the price for Tia's help, we should capture the Marine clone and tie her up. That way, we can attempt to let Marine take her soul back from the clone."

"And if she is incapable of doing so?" Norrington asked.

"We'll deal with that when the times comes." Jack replied evasively. "Try to be more optimistic won't you Norry? You're ruining it for everyone."

"Forgive me for being realistic on our current situation." Norrington replied with sarcasm as he narrowed his eyes at Jack. The pirate glared right back at Norrington but said nothing more at him. He turned his gaze to the rest of the group with a friendlier grin.

"Well then, anything else that needs to be discussed?" He asked. No one said anything else, but a loud '**BANG**' from outside caught everyone's attention. Will moved towards the window since he was the closest to it and looked out to see a trail of smoke rising to the sky and exploding in a red light. He turned his head towards Jack with a frown on his face.

"It's the Black Pearl. It looks like something has happened."

"Will, I want you, Jones and Norrington to come with me. We're going to check on things over there." Jack said. Cornelius walked up to Jack with a determined look on his face.

"I'm coming too." The pirate nodded to the older man and was even more surprised to see his old man come out of the room where Marine was and walk towards the group.

"Seems there's trouble afoot. Mind if I come along?" Teague asked.

"Do whatever you want." Jack mumbled in reply. He was not in the mood to argue with his father when things were becoming pretty hectic. Then he looked at the women and smiled.

"Relax loves, just stay put and keep an eye on things here while we deal with whatever it is back on the ship." He said. Carrie pursed her lips in disappointment that she couldn't come along with them but nodded. Elizabeth stood beside Carrie and clasped her hands together.

"Please be careful." She told them. Will gave her a loving smile and a nod before he followed Jack and the others out of Tia's shack, leaving the women alone to fend for themselves.

* * *

Jack and the others took one of the rowboats that were tied to the small dock and rowed as quickly as they could towards the Black Pearl. Things seemed calm and uneventful from where they were looking, but Jack had a feeling inside of him that something terrible was going to happen soon. He quickly went up the ladder that his crew dropped down for them and was glad to see Gibbs waiting for him when he reached the deck.

"Captain." Gibbs said in greeting.

"What seems to be the problem Gibbs?" Jack asked. The first mate beckoned to Jack and led him to the other side of the ship. Jones and the others made it up a few minutes later and followed the pirate from behind. They all stood behind the railing and looked out to where Gibbs was pointing at. The older man handed Jack a looking-glass which the latter took and opened. He peered through and saw a ship that was getting larger as it came closer. As Jack did this, Gibbs spoke what was on his mind to the rest.

"At first we weren't going to pay any attention to it; the ship looked like it only had a few more trips left before it was headed for Davy Jones' Locker. Then all of a sudden Carter comes and tells me that he saw someone over there who looked a lot like Marine. So I took a look as well and saw that it was the Marine look-alike. That was when I ordered the men to fire that signal." Jack took a few more moments to stare at the ship through the looking-glass, and still found no sign of the woman. Without thinking much on it he passed the item to Jones, who eagerly took it and looked through, before frowning at Gibbs.

"Are you absolutely sure that it was her?" He asked.

"Unless she had some other clone we don't know about, then I'm sure that it was the lass we've been seeing. She was standing by herself and ordering people on the main deck." Gibbs replied.

"Did you keep an eye on her after raising the signal?" The first mate gave Jack a sheepish grin as he scratched the back of his head with his hand.

"...well the truth is, we didn't. But she couldn't have done much on that ship in a few minutes, could she?"

"You can never tell with women." Jack muttered under his breath. Gibbs half-heard Jack and was about to ask him to repeat what he said when the pirate captain suddenly shook his head and spoke once more.

"It doesn't matter anymore. That signal you raised would have been noticed by anyone within sight. They would know of our presence no matter how hard we try to hide it now." He said. "Prepare the canons and tell everyone to arm themselves. We're going to attack them before they do the same to us." Gibbs nodded and rushed off to shout orders at Jack's crew. Jones and the others were still standing beside Jack and looking at the other ship through the glass when Jack turned to them and grabbed the item from Will, who had still been using it. They all turned their attention to the pirate captain who had a frown on his face.

"That goes for the rest of you as well." The three young men forced back sighs as they walked away from Jack and moved about the deck to help out the crew. Cornelius and Teague remained where they were as they watched Jack turn his gaze at the direction of Tia's shack with slight concern. When Jack caught them looking at him, he took out his compass and looked at it intently, pretending to do something important. The truth was, he wanted to tell them to leave him alone and get to work as well, but he had no authority over them, and the group knew it.

"Jackie boy, might I have a word with you?" He winced at the sound of his father's voice and the nickname he was given. Hesitantly, he turned to look at Teague with a polite smile so forceful it looked more like a snarl.

"Yes? What is it?"

"I know that you're the captain of this ship, and that you've had enough experiences over the years of your piracy to make good decisions during a crisis, but humor me for once and listen to my opinion." Jack was about to humor Teague in an entirely different way when he saw the seriousness in his father's eyes and found that he had forgotten the snide remark he had planned in his mind. With a heavy sigh, he gestured with his arms for the older man to go on.

"First off, I can see what you're thinking at this point. The enemy knows of our presence and our location. They'll probably come after us and try to attack us so we ought to throw them off and make the first move. Bold and risky, but effective at times. There's good reason for you to think that way of the enemy, but you of all people know that this is not an ordinary enemy." Teague began. Jack wanted to tell his father to stop, but held back his tongue and continued to stay silent. "She has told you that she came from a world where she knows about our world. And even if her other world doesn't have any information on us, she has been in our world long enough to know a bit of it without our help. The other part of her has been living here from the moment she was born after all."

"So you're saying that she knows what I plan to do?"

"Not only that I'm afraid. Think about it boy, her ship's the walking dead, her crew's loyalty is to be questioned, and you, by far, have more firepower than she does. She's clearly at a disadvantage. And since she thinks the same way her other half thinks, I'm sure you know what her decision would be. Her priority is not to fight you. It's to get something from you." Jack was slowly beginning to pick up on what his father was thinking, but it all hit him with Teague's last words.

"Have you given any thoughts on how she managed to trail after the ship so quickly and so easily?" Jack immediately brought up the looking-glass and took another look at the other ship. He combed through the main deck intently, looking at every nook and cranny that he could manage to see, until he was sure that he had scanned the whole thing from left to right. What he found in his search - or didn't find for that matter - made fear and worry rise in him.

"Will! Come over here for a minute." He shouted. The young blacksmith stopped what he was doing and walked up towards Jack with a curious gaze.

"What's wrong Jack?"

"Were Elizabeth and Carrie armed when we went to Tia's shack?"

"I'm sure that Elizabeth wasn't, but I'm not sure about Carrie. Why would you ask such a thing?" Jack cursed as he brushed past Will and began to shout for a rowboat to be lowered to the water immediately. Will blinked in surprise and confusion then walked up to the captain determinedly. "Jack! What's happened? Is Elizabeth going to be all right?"

"I'm a fool, an incredibly slow fool!" Jack muttered angrily, ignoring Will as he stood there impatiently waiting for the crew to finish preparing the boat. "Why didn't I think of it?! I should have known she was going to plan this out."

"Jack!" Will shouted as he grabbed the other man's shoulder and turned him around. "Calm down and tell me what's happened?" The pirate captain closed his eyes and took a slow, deep breath.

_That's right...calm down. Rushing to things got you into this mess in the first place. You have to stop and think things through first._

"My old man has given me something to think about." Jack began. After seeing Jack shout orders at his crew to prepare a boat, Norrington and Jones quickly walked up to the group as Jack went on speaking. "The way Marine's clone managed to catch up to us so easily is very suspicious. That's when I remembered that Marine is not only a person from the other world, but also a person from this world."

"What on earth are you talking about? Just come out and say it already." Norrington said with impatience. Jack was too worried and concerned to make a comical comeback at the other man as he narrowed his eyes.

"Marine knows about Tia Dalma and her whereabouts. That's the only possibility I can think of as to why she's able to come after us this quickly. If you would recall, Carrie knew a bit about her, but not as much compared to the other woman. She had probably known about Tia through her life as a pirate's daughter in this world. And remember, everything that Marine knows, her clone knows as well. Now take a good look at the other ship." He told them as he handed the looking-glass to Norrington. The former Commodore took it from Jack and quickly scanned the enemy ship. Then he lowered the item with a slightly concerned expression on his face.

"All of their rowboats are missing. And there are less than five or six people moving about the deck."

"What?! Lemme see that!" Jones cried as he snatched the looking-glass from Norrington's hands. The former Commodore glared at the thief but couldn't get a word in as Will began to panic.

"That means that the clone is somewhere else! She and the rest of the missing men on her ship might be after Elizabeth and the others even as we speak. We have to go back!" Will cried. He was about to walk towards the ladder that led to the rowboat below them when Jack grabbed his shoulder and pulled him back.

"Sorry mate. Now that you've gone and panicked, it's my turn to keep you from making a mistake. One of us has to stay calm and collected after all."

"What are we doing standing here and waiting?! We have to get back to the women or they're going to get caught! They're no match for Marine and her crew." Will argued. Norrington went up to Will's other side and held him back as well.

"For once I agree with the pirate. It's too risky to go back now. The pirate left those men on the other ship for a reason. Once we set out on that small, defenseless rowboat they will kill us in mere seconds."

"So what are we going to do?" Jones asked the group as he turned his attention to them.

"We're going to go on with our first plan. And that is to attack their ship first. I'm sure that it wouldn't take too long; after all they're only 5 or 6 men on a worn-out ship." Jack said. "Then once we're sure that the ship's not a threat anymore, we head on to Tia's shack and save the women. Savvy?"

"But are you sure that we would make it in time to rescue Elizabeth and the others?" Will asked. Jack gave him a large grin in reply.

"Well, I wouldn't say that much, but you know how women are when irked. And I'm specifically talking about your lovely wife Lizzie."


	34. Battle for the Coin

**AN: **Wahhhh so sorry for the delay. As usual I'm pretty busy with school and all. Here's the next chapter! R&R Please and I hope you guys enjoy it.**  
**

* * *

_**"You want it? Then come and get it!" **__**- Marine's Clone  
**_

**Chapter 34 - Battle for the Coin  
**

"Take that!" Carrie shouted as she swung her sword horizontally at her attacker. The pirate evaded the slash as he took a step back, but because of that he couldn't evade the chair that Elizabeth brought down on his head. With a loud crash and a soft thud, the enemy fell to the ground only to be stepped upon by another man. More pirates eager for a fight were crowding outside the door frame, waiting for their turn to go in. The next man to stand before Carrie raised his sword above his head in an attempt to slash at her. But Carrie was quick enough to raise her own sword up in defense. A metallic clang sounded in her ears as her sword met his. And they began to parry.

"Just how many men did they bring in order to take us down?!" Carrie cried as she fought with the pirate. The sound of breaking glass reached her ears and she looked behind her to see men climbing into the windows. "I feel like a rock star being chased down by crazy, rabid fangirls!" Elizabeth was having her own share of fights as she held the chair in her hands like a deadly weapon.

"Well I just feel foolish. Why on earth did we let Jack take all the men to the ship?" She asked rhetorically. Carrie couldn't help but giggle as she stabbed her opponent in the shoulder and kicked him aside to face another.

"I'm sure Jack's feeling guilty right now and is coming to save us from our predicament." Carrie replied. Elizabeth raised up her chair in front of her like a shield as a pirate attempted to thrust through her with his sword. The weapon lodged itself onto the piece of wood deeply, making the man weaponless. Elizabeth took this opportunity to swing the chair a few times at the man then thrusting it towards his stomach. The pirate doubled over in pain then crashed to the ground as the blond haired woman brought down the piece of furniture on the attacker's head. There was the sound of a splitting crack as the chair broke into pieces from the force of the swing. While there was no one attacking her, Elizabeth used all her strength to get the sword out of the piece of wood it was stuck to.

"I've learned from experience to never trust a man to come when you need him the most." Elizabeth said then with a grunt, took the sword in her hands and held it in fighting stance. "They tend to arrive just as most of the work is done." Carrie opened her mouth and was about to say something else when the door leading to where Marine was suddenly swung open. Tia and the young female pirate slowly walked out, the former one with one of her hands up in the air while holding onto the latter with the other and leading her along like a small child.

"Tia! Vanessa! It's too dangerous out here. Go back into the room." Carrie cried as she took a step forward and tried to go to their aid. Just before she could do anything else, a pirate came up from behind the two and aimed a sword at Marine. The young blond haired woman froze and stared at her best friend with panic.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you lass..." The pirate snarled with a large grin on his face. "Now drop that sword and keep your hands where I can see them." Carrie gritted her teeth in frustration as she immediately dropped the sword to the ground and placed her hands on top of her head. She glanced to her side, to where Elizabeth was, and saw that she had stopped fighting as well. At least 5 men were aiming their swords at Elizabeth and more were coming in through the front door. As the room became more crowded, the women's chances of escaping grew slimmer.

Pirates stood behind and at the sides of Carrie, holding her down and taking away all of her weapons from her. All of the men who were already inside the little shack were looking at the group of women, each one grinning and licking his lips lewdly. Elizabeth couldn't do anything as some of the pirates grabbed her and dragged her to one side upon one of the pirate's orders. Carrie lurched forward as her own captors took her to the same place.

As they were being moved about, the pirates who were by the door quickly stepped aside and opened a path that led into the shack. Carrie and Elizabeth turned both of their heads to the sound of boot steps coming closer and slowly began to feel dread as they watched a familiar female pirate enter the room and make her way towards where Tia was. The dark skinned witch doctor calmly turned her gaze at the clone who stopped right in front of her with a smug look on her face.

"Bet you didn't expect this to happen did you?" She asked. Tia said nothing in reply and only held Marine's hand tighter. The clone gave a short huff in amusement at Tia's movement then raised her hand up in a gesture. Pirates nearby moved up to Tia and dragged her away, with the witch doctor not putting up a fight. She was forced to let go of the other woman's hand, leaving her oblivious ward unprotected.

When it was only the two of them standing there within that large circle of pirates, Sharpshooter Marine walked up to face Sharpshooter Marine. She watched Marine look at anything but her for a few seconds then took out her sword to point it at Marine's face. The female pirate made no reaction to the movement; only continued to stare and look uninterestedly at everything around her. She wasn't aware of the sword pointed at her nor of how much in danger she and the rest of the women were. She took it all in without a care in the world. The clone replaced her sword back in its sheath and gave a soft sigh.

"I had guessed as much, that you would attempt to revive her or something similar to that, but this is just sad." She said with a small shake of her head. "Look at her! It's like taking candy from a baby. Seeing her like this only gives the impression that I can fall under her state too. Hey you!" She leaned closer until she was face to face with Marine. "Why don't you smarten up? You're giving the both of us a bad reputation! Or better yet, why don't you just go back to sleep and let me take the rest of your soul? It'll be easier for everyone that way." Marine finally looked up to face her clone and blinked a few times. Then she widened her eyes and screamed as she held her head in pain.

Everyone staggered back in surprise as the female pirate kneeled on the ground and continued to scream. Carrie gritted her teeth and tried to pry herself out of her captor's hold. Elizabeth was doing the same thing beside her while Tia gazed upon the young women sadly, knowing that even if she tried, it would only make things more messy.

"Let me go! Can't you see she's in pain? She's lost her memory and anything that reminds her of it gives her that headache. Leave her alone!" Carrie cried angrily. The clone turned her gaze to the young blond haired woman and smirked.

"I don't know...this looks really fun to do. Maybe I should take her to even more familiar places just for the heck of it." She mused to herself. Carrie gritted her teeth and narrowed her eyes at Marine's clone so intensely that it surprised even the clone herself. A smile of amusement came to her face, then she shrugged her shoulders and chuckled as she took a step back from Marine and raised her hands up as high as she could.

"I guess I can let her go just this once. After all, if she dies from the insanity or from that seemingly painful headache, I'd be half-complete." She said. With a small gesture to the pirates, they moved closer to the shaken up Marine and blocked her view of anyone else. Then after Marine had calmed down a little, the clone turned her gaze to the rest with an evil smile on her face. "Gentlemen, our work here is finally done. Feast your eyes as I finally become a complete being!" Most of them had no idea what the clone meant, but they were smart enough to see that she expected a reaction. They immediately cheered and praised her as loudly as they could. The opposing group could only stand and stare as their defeat neared them like a looming dark thunder cloud.

Watching her best friend be in such a state made Carrie want to curl up and cry. Acting calmly and thinking quickly in times of crisis and life-threatening situations wasn't her thing, no matter how much she forced herself to become strong. It was always Marine who told her to stay calm and that everything was going to be all right. Even in the most dangerous situations, Marine would always smile at her and convince her that somehow things were going to work out in the end. It always seemed like she had some sort of plan prepared for anything that could happen. Now she had no one to tell her that, and it made tears well up in her eyes.

_Vanessa...I really miss having you around. Please come back and save us from this mess we're in._

Her thoughts were cut short when Marine's clone took out the gold aztec coin hanging around her neck. The female pirate took a step closer to the group of pirates who were shielding the frail look-alike while spinning the coin casually. It was clear that she was in no hurry at all. Carrie gritted her teeth and felt every fiber in her muscles tense. She grunted as she tried to struggle with the pirates who were holding her down, but no matter how hard she moved, she couldn't escape their hold. She turned her gaze to Marine and shouted as loud as she could.

"Vanessa! Can you hear me? It's Carrie, your best friend. Look at me and listen, I know you're still somewhere in there even though you're acting this way. Please wake up! Your clone is standing right in front of you and if you don't wake up and do something, she's going to make you a part of her. Vanessa? Answer me! _Vanessa!_" Marine's clone watched Carrie's speech with slight interest and with a large amount of amusement. She then turned her gaze to the female pirate herself, who was still as up in the clouds as she was minutes ago.

"It's really too bad Carrie. No matter how much you try, you can't wake her up from whatever it is that's causing her to act like some retarded child. But feel free to continue on with this charade. I'm feeling pretty entertained." She said with a large smile on her face. Carrie narrowed her eyes and was about to open her mouth to give a retort when the sound of battle cries rose from outside the shack. Everyone who was inside turned a head towards the source, and saw the rest of the pirates looking behind them at something. The female pirate pursed her lips then called for one of the pirates who was farther from the room.

"What the hell is going on outside?!" Before anyone could answer her, a noise outside answered for her.

"Elizabeth! Carrie! Tia! Are you in there?" A wave of relief rushed over Elizabeth as she heard her husband's voice outside. The blond haired woman smiled as she turned her face eagerly at the door. Even Carrie's defeated posture lightened as she realized that there was still a chance for everyone to be saved. They could hear the sounds of swords clashing against one another and the sound of men screaming as they fell into the water with a splash.

"Will! We're all inside and we're all alright." Elizabeth shouted in reply. Carrie's grin was wide as she turned her gaze to the other woman.

"Ha! I told you they'll come to save us in no time at all." She said. "And look, most of the work isn't done yet."

"Well in this situation I am happy to say that I was mistaken." Elizabeth replied with a smile. Marine's clone gritted her teeth in irritation as she listened to the battle outside. She had gloated over her victory too long. Now was the time to finish what she came here for while Jack and the others were still busy trying to get in. When her head turned around, she saw that Marine was reaching out towards the coin in her hand and widened her eyes in surprise.

While she had turned her attention to Carrie as she tried to call to her friend, the female pirate had set her eyes on the coin. Like a child with a shiny new toy, the eyes of marine grew wide with curiosity and awe. The coin drew her in the way a strong magnet would and before she knew it, she was making her way towards the coin. Somehow even if she had no memory of it, she wanted to get her hands on the coin. If Marine's clone still had her attention on the trouble that was coming from outside, she would have successfully gotten a hold of the coin.

Immediately, like an instinctive reaction, Marine's clone back slapped the female pirate and sent her falling to the ground. She narrowed her eyes at her counter part and scolded herself for underestimating her other half. It seemed the power of the coin and the mind of Marine were stronger than she thought. Knowing that time was running short, she held up the gold coin and began to press it against the unconscious Marine. Carrie saw the movement her best friend made and felt another ray of hope light up. Seeing that her captors had their guards down, she quickly moved into action. She stepped hard on the toe of one then smashed her elbow into his face. The pirate screamed in pain and let her go as he held his now broken nose. Carrie was able to wrestle herself away from their hold and ran as fast as she could towards Marine and her clone.

She grabbed the sword of one of the pirates who wasn't paying attention at her and charged at Marine's clone with a loud cry. The clone quickly turned around and took out her own weapon from its sheath. Carrie swung her sword down as hard as she could but her opponent easily blocked it with hers. They stood face to face, locked in a battle of strength as they tried to push the other away.

"Why don't you quit all this pretending to be tough and just wait for someone else to save your sorry ass?" Marine clone taunted. "Save yourself the humiliation of being easily taken down and adding more burden to your comrades."

"Say what you want! But as long as my best friend is in trouble I'm going to do everything I can to help her!" Carrie replied determinedly. "I'm not giving up no matter what you say or do." Marine's clone chuckled before she took a step back, catching Carrie off-guard as she stumbled forward.

"If that is what you wish!" She pulled back her arm and was about to thrust her sword at Carrie when a gunshot suddenly rang out from outside. An intense, searing pain ran through the clone's arm as she dropped her sword to the ground and slightly staggered back from the shock of the pain. She looked at her right arm, to where she had felt the pain, and saw blood flowing down to her hands. With heated, glaring eyes, she looked up to where the bullet had come from as she transferred the coin from her left to her right hand then pressed her free hand on the wound tightly. Jack stood there by the door with a pistol aimed directly at the clone. He had managed to squeeze himself through the mass of fighting pirates into the room and was the one who had fired at her. He brought down his pistol when Marine's clone looked at him and he wagged a finger at her with a smile on his face.

"Tsk. Tsk. Tsk. How can you try to kill your own best friend? I am deeply ashamed of your lack of loyalty." He said in mock disappointment. Carrie had managed to get her balance back while Marine's clone was taken aback by the gunshot. After she had recovered, she looked at Jack and smiled in relief, feeling confident that everything was going to turn out all right with him and the others there. The clone gritted her teeth at Jack as she took another step back with her hand still pressing on her wound.

"You dare fire a shot at me? Have you forgotten the fact that if I die, your precious Marine will stay in her state for as long as she lives?" She cried.

"Of course I haven't forgotten. That's why you're still standing." Jack replied as he placed his pistol back in its holster. Then he held out his hand to her with an expectant look on his face. "Now...be a good love and hand over the gold coin to me." Without thinking Marine's clone tightened her grip on the gold aztec coin she held. Then with an air of challenge she grabbed her sword from the ground and raised it in front of her defensively.

"You want it? Then come and get it!" She shouted. Jack's lips curved up with amusement as he took out his own sword from its sheath then pointed it at Marine's clone.

"All right then. Prepare yourself!" The female pirate narrowed her eyes and, gripping the hilt of her sword tight, charged at Jack with a sudden burst of speed. Jack took a step back and raised his sword up in defense as both weapons clashed against each other. The two pirates took another step back at the same time then swung their swords at each other. As they parried against one another, Carrie turned her attention to the others who were still fighting their way inside. She made her way towards Elizabeth's side and together they continued to fight against the other pirates.

"Carrie? Where's Marine?" The blond haired woman asked. Realizing Elizabeth's question, the other blond haired woman frantically turned her head left and right in search of the familiar face of her best friend. She saw Marine lying unconscious on the ground not far from where Jack and the clone were fighting then called for the other woman's attention and pointed to where Marine was. Together the two women made their way to where the female pirate was and stood behind her protectively as they continued to fight.

* * *

Jack and Marine were practically moving around the room, swinging their swords wildly but with control, despite the limited space it offered for them. They tended to use the chairs and tables and shelves to their advantage as the battle went on. They once passed by Tia who was trying to protect herself with her spells and incantations, and it reminded Jack that they were fighting inside her home, filled with all sorts of magical trinkets and creepy specimens. As he heard the sounds of breaking glass, he wondered how Tia was feeling now that they were practically destroying everything in her home and shivered involuntarily. Marine's clone saw this action and smirked as they continued to swing their swords at each other.

"What's the matter Jack? Starting to lose your nerves?" She taunted.

"Captain Jack Sparrow never loses his nerve in a battle." Jack proudly stated. Then as an afterthought, "Unless of course I was fighting against a woman like what we're doing now, and said lady suddenly decides to undress herself in front of me. If you were to do that, then perhaps I may lose my nerves." He said as he wriggled his eyebrows suggestively. Marine narrowed her eyes very low and lunged at him with a loud growl.

Jack parried and met her attacks with his own easily. He noted her every move, and saw to his delight that he could somewhat anticipate them because he had practiced fighting with her before. As the clone swung down at him, Jack moved to the side and tried to slash at her. The clone managed to evade it in time then swung her sword around to try and get a hit only to have it deflected by her opponent. Despite their current situation and the danger that rose along with it, the pirate captain couldn't help but enjoy himself as he continued to fight against Marine's clone. The female pirate narrowed her eyes and growled loudly in frustration as she swung her sword at him angrily and repeatedly.

"Why the hell are you smiling at?! What's so funny about this huh?" Jack saw how she was becoming irritated at the fact that she couldn't land a hit on him and decided to use her lack of concentration to his advantage.

"Well the fact that you're trying so hard to defeat me at sword-fighting amuses me. You of all people should know that you can never beat Captain Jack Sparrow, not even when you were still a whole being." He said proudly. Marine's clone snorted and rolled her eyes at him.

"What makes you think that you can't be beaten now?" She asked him.

"Because I can do this." Before Marine's clone could do or say anything, Jack took out his pistol from its holster and raised it in front of him. The clone didn't have a chance to fully defend herself and dropped the gold aztec coin she held as the bullet hit it hard. With a loud "ping" it flew up in the air then fell in the middle of battling pirates. Marine's clone watched it all happen with wide, shocked eyes then she gave Jack her angriest, most intense glare ever.

"Hey! That's not fair." She complained. With a large, impish grin, Jack held his arms out on either side and pretended to look innocent before her.

"Pirate." He replied. The clone gritted her teeth, wanting so badly to dive into the fighting men and look for the coin. But she knew that the pirate captain before her wouldn't let her do that without a fight. Impatience began to fill her whole mind as she gripped the hilt of her sword even tighter, turning the knuckles on her hand white. She had to end this fight as soon as possible before the coin falls into the wrong hands and ruin all of her hard work in getting to where she was.

"You're going to pay for that!" She screamed. Jack's humorous mood slowly faded away as he saw just how angry the female pirate was. In a way, it reminded him of all the times that Marine got angry at him or threatened to beat him up or kill him. Though now it would be a real threat instead of an empty one like the ones he always knew Marine gave him. He kept his pistol back in its holster and readied his sword as the furious female pirate charged at him harder than before. Even if she was intent on killing him, he couldn't do the same to her in fear of losing the Marine he knew. It prevented him from truly fighting the female pirate with everything he's got.

Things were beginning to get out of hand, even Jack could sense that as Marine's slashes grew less focused and more wild. He could sense her impatience radiating from her as she attempted to end the fight quickly. As he avoided her attacks and swung at her himself, he wished that either Elizabeth or Carrie would get their hands on the coin soon. Even he was starting to get irritated and frustrated at their fight.

But it seemed that there was still no chance of that happening as the pirates and the others on Marine's side continued to fight against one another. Both women were still busy fighting with a number of enemies to take notice of Jack's fight with Marine's clone or of the gold coin that flew from the clone's hand and into the midst of the battle while the rest of Jack's team were still fighting outside.

On one hand, there was a noticeable change in the number of pirates inside the room as they continued to kill and beat down men. There were fewer men standing and more men lying on the ground in small piles, some of which were thrown out into the water for a larger space to fight in. Elizabeth could already see Will and the others outside the door, still aggressively fighting their way into the shack with all their strength. She counted the number of familiar faces among those outside and blinked in surprise when she arrived at a small number.

"What happened to the others? I only see 10 of our allies fighting outside the shack. Does this mean that the clone's allies are stronger than Jack's crew?" She asked worriedly. Carrie stopped fighting to look outside as well and tilted her head to the side in slight confusion.

"Now that you mention it...it is kinda strange. But if you think about it, it's possible that Jack only brought with him a small number. After all, having lesser men who have greater skill would be better in this type of situation." Carrie mused in thought. "They would probably have an easier time fighting against enemies in a very tight space compared to having a crowd pushing each other about."

"Well that makes sense. But I wish the numbers would be a lot more comforting..." Elizabeth said.

"I'd have to agree...but on the bright side, we'll eventually see these pirates get outnumbered by us while we keep on fighting." Carrie said confidently. As they continued to fight, Elizabeth caught sight of Tia having a hard time fending herself from the pirates who were grinning at her evilly.

"Carrie, I'll go over there to help Tia." She said. Carrie nodded at her and went back to fighting as Elizabeth moved closer towards Tia and fought off the men who were crowding around her. These men were not that skilled in fighting, while she on the other hand had been taught by Will who was exceptionally skilled with a sword. Once the danger was gone and most of the pirates had been brought down, Tia smiled at Elizabeth gratefully.

"Thank you for the help. But you should save your energy in protecting Marine. She needs more protection than I do and I can handle these pirates on my own so you need not worry about me." She said. Elizabeth smiled back at Tia as she glanced at where Carrie was. Then the sight of something that was not there made her widen her eyes in surprise and fear. She hurriedly made her way to where the other woman was and grabbed her attention while she was not in the middle of a fight.

"Carrie? Where is Marine?" The young blond haired woman blinked at Elizabeth in confusion, the question not able to register in her mind quickly. Then as she turned her head around and glanced at the ground where Marine had been lying on previously, realization dawned on her. In a panic, she began to search frantically for any sign of her best friend among the heads of pirates within the room.

"Vanessa? Vanessa where are you? Vanessa! She was just here a while ago." Carrie said as everything else that concerned her was pushed aside. Only one thing was on her mind now. "We have to look for her before something happens!" She cried. Elizabeth nodded her agreement and looked around the midst of the battle in search of the female pirate. Marine was presently not in her right mind; she couldn't have gone that far. But so far they could only see pirates, either fighting or unmoving on the ground. Carrie felt like they were looking for a young child in the mall, only the danger was very clear and every second that they couldn't find her was a second that could kill her.

Elizabeth turned her gaze to where Jack and Marine's clone were still fighting, and was tempted to pull the pirate captain away to ask for his help. But she saw how intense the two were, and knew that it was dangerous to call for him at the time. If she did, she knew without a doubt that Marine's clone would cease fighting and do everything in her power to get her hands on her other self. It was better for them to be oblivious to their problems. Next, she turned her gaze to where her husband and the rest of Jack's men were, busy fighting their way in. She knew with disappointment that she couldn't ask them for their help either since they couldn't even enter the room yet.

While Carrie looked for Marine, her hands gripped the hilt of the sword she held tightly as different alternative scenes of what could happen to her best friend passed through her mind. She saw Marine being killed by one of the pirates, Marine accidentally killing herself with a weapon, Marine being stepped upon by pirates in battle, Marine getting into the middle of a fight between two men, Marine falling into the river and drowning, Marine slowly disappearing as her clone took the rest of her soul. Out of all the things she imagined, the last one scared her the most. Tears began to build up in her eyes as she continued to search and fail to see any sign of the female pirate.

"Vanessa! God damn it Vanessa where are you?!" Carrie cried with frustration. Elizabeth turned her gaze to Carrie with concern and was about to comfort her a little when she saw a pirate standing at her back with an evil gleam in his eye. The two women had forgotten the fact that they were still surrounded by pirates who would kill them immediately, given an opportunity. The blond haired woman widened her eyes in shock and fear for her friend as she tried to run forward to help her.

"Carrie! Behind you!" At hearing Elizabeth's cry of warning, Carrie turned her head around and watched with horror as the pirate standing in front of her began to thrust his sword through her body. The young blond haired woman saw blood flying in front of her and splattering her clothes, but it took her a full minute to realize that it wasn't her blood that was spilled. She stared incredulously at her best friend as she stood in front on her, a bit to the side, with her back against the pirate. Blood dripped down from her right hand as it gripped the sword tightly and kept it from moving further at Carrie. She was at a loss for words as she watched Marine lift up her head and look over her shoulder at the pirate who had attacked. Her face, an exact copy of his intimidating pirate captain, and her angry glare caused the pirate to falter and lose his nerve.

"That wasn't a very bright thing to do now, is it?" Marine said rhetorically before she pushed the sword away from Carrie then did a roundhouse kick at the man. After she saw the man crashing against another pirate, sending the two to the ground in a slightly tangled heap, she turned her gaze to Carrie and Elizabeth with a slightly irritated expression on her face. She wasn't at all bothered by the fact that her hand was still bleeding.

"What the hell is going on here?!" She cried with irritation. The female pirate's best friend stood there in shock for another second before relief and happiness filled her and she lunged herself at Marine while she let the tears flow freely down her face. Marine was taken aback as Carrie crashed onto her and hugged her as tightly as she could, crying freely as she did.


	35. The End of a Battle

**AN:** Finally! I've finally updated the story. Sorry for the delay folks. Don't forget to read and review!

* * *

_**"This battle ends now!" - Sharpshooter Marine**_

**Chapter 35 - The End of a Battle**

Elizabeth walked up to Marine and couldn't help but hug her along with Carrie as well. She was so relieved that Marine was not only safe from harm but seemed to be back to her normal self. The female pirate blinked at the two women who clung to her like bees to honey then used that time to look around the room. Men were still fighting with other men; she could see Will, Jones, Norrington, and a few others from Jack's crew finally making their way inside. They stared at the three women in confusion and surprise then began making their way towards the group. Marine continued to look around then stopped when her sights settled on Jack himself, fighting against her clone in a heated battle of swords. Before she could make any comment, Elizabeth released Marine and looked at her with a smile on her face.

"Marine, I'm so glad to see you. But you shouldn't have been so reckless and injured yourself. Here, let me wrap the wound for you." Elizabeth said as she gently pulled the injured arm towards her and ripped a piece of her clothes to use it as a makeshift bandage. As she tended to the wound she spoke with Marine. "Do you remember anything that happened before you woke up?" At the question, the female pirate remembered her initial confusion and turned her gaze to the blond haired woman with a frown on her face.

"No, I don't remember a single thing after I fell unconscious. What's going on? What are we doing here and why is my clone here as well?" She asked. Norrington came up to them at that moment and decided to voice out his question as well.

"Marine, how on earth did you manage to become...yourself again? Have you been aware of everything that was going on?" He asked. Marine turned her gaze to Norrington, feeling even more confused than before.

"What the hell are you talking about? I've always been myself!" She cried. "I swear everyone here's going bonkers! No, I don't remember a single thing from after I blacked out and no I have no idea what is going on right now. All I could remember was waking up in this little shack, seeing pirates all over me fighting against each other and this coin in my hand. Now can anyone please tell me what's going on!" Everyone turned their gazes to the gold aztec coin Marine held in her hand with wide eyes.

"How did you manage to get that?!" Carrie asked. Marine gritted her teeth and wanted so much to scream and shout in frustration at the fact that no one was answering any of her questions. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, calming herself and telling herself that if she was patient enough, she would eventually get the answers she wanted. If she lost her temper, then things would just be more confusing and chaotic than before. She looked back at the group and shrugged at the question.

"I don't know. I just had it in my hand when I woke up..." She looked down at the coin together with the rest. "Everything else before that is a blank to me." Will had a thoughtful expression on his face as he listened to the others speak. Then he held out his hand to Marine, interrupting everyone from the conversation they were having.

"Can you give me the coin for a moment?" Marine blinked at him then with a sigh, placed the coin on his hand. At the moment her hand left Will's, her eyes turned dull and her face lost any expression that it had a moment ago. Everyone watched as the female pirate's lips curled into a random smile and her head began turning around, looking at things the way a child would look at a new toy or new object. They watched her look at the ground where a sword lay and touched it gingerly.

"The coin brought her back?" Carrie stated more than asked. "But how did she get the coin in the first place? And why does it give her back the memories she had before?" While everyone was looking at each other in confusion, Jones took the gold coin from Will's hands and kneeled on the ground in front of Marine. Then he took her hand in his and placed the coin on her palm. A few seconds later an intelligent gleam returned in Marine's eyes and she stared at the sword she still held in confusion.

"Wha...? What was I doing? How did I end up like this? And for the last time, what the hell is going on?!" She turned her gaze to Jones then finally losing her patience, grabbed him by the collar of his shirt and shook him violently. "I've had it! I want some answers now and I'm going to get them or someone's going to get beaten up real bad!" She shouted angrily. The thief widened his eyes in surprise and he gave a cry of panic as he was tossed about strongly. The rest of the group finally took notice of the two as Marine stood up, forcing Jones to move with her.

"H-h-hey Marine! Calm down and let's talk in a nice, non-violent way. Let me go and I'll tell you everything we know." He pleaded. Marine felt her mouth twitch slightly but she released her tight grip on the thief and narrowed her eyes at the rest of the group as she crossed her arms over her chest and tapped her foot impatiently. Jones was glad to be free from Marine's grip but was afraid to anger her further and began to talk about the things that have happened so far. She listened to Jones as he told her about how she had fallen into a coma before the group decided to make a trip to Shipwreck's Cove. Then a discussion with Teague led them to Tia Dalma's and her awakening. He ended his story with the clone's appearance and their current battle for the coin and for herself.

"That's all we know I swear! You were behaving like a young, brainless child until now, when you held that coin in your hand." He said. Marine looked at the coin that was once again in her hands then looked at Jones with one eyebrow raised.

"You have got to be kidding me."

"It's true Vanessa." Carrie said in defense to what Jones said. She was beginning to feel sorry for the thief since he was forced to become the target of Marine's current irritation and anger. "You were acting like an autistic kid ever since Tia woke you up. When you handed the coin over to Will you began acting like one until Jones let you hold the coin again." She explained. Marine looked at everyone else who had expressions of agreement then gave a heavy sigh.

"I can't believe this...I wake up after being unconscious for a few weeks to find myself in the middle of a fight and that without having this coin in my hand I'm going to turn into some kind of autistic nut. Maybe I should have just continued staying ignorant of all this." Marine muttered. She turned her gaze to Jack and the other pirates who were still fighting against one another, and felt guilt course through her body. No, she was tired of being chased around and sending everyone else into danger while she was running away from it all. It was time to settle things with herself.

She looked down at the sword she was poking earlier and knelt down to pick it up. It wasn't as good as the ones she had before, the ones Will made, but given the circumstances they were in it would have to do. Then she stood up and slowly made her way to where Jack and her clone were fighting against each other. The two pirates seemed to be doing well as they parried and blocked, but Marine wasn't going to wait for Jack to fall down before she made her move. Carrie widened her eyes in surprise and immediately hurried to Marine's side to stop her.

"What are you doing?! Are you insane? If you go over there now and interrupt their fight you'll just be in the way. Your clone took a lot of your strength and skills from you so now you're obviously weaker than her. Let Jack take care of it since he's still doing fine on his own." She said. Marine turned her gaze to Carrie with a frown.

"You expect me to just stand here and watch them fight for my life? It has never been Jack's responsibility to deal with my clone, and it never will be. I don't care if my strength's been taken away from me. I won't let anyone die for my problems." She said. Then without letting Carrie say anything else, she charged towards her clone with her sword pulled back. Elizabeth walked up to Carrie and held her shoulder in an effort to comfort the younger woman as the rest of the men walked on either side and stood there to watch as well.

"We still have a few things to do as well. Let them do their role in this fight while we do ours." Will told the two women. Carrie gave a small nod to Will as he and the rest of the men unsheathed their swords and took out the remaining pirates who were on the clone's side. The young blond haired woman didn't feel like helping out, instead she wanted to stand there and watch how things are going to go with Jack, Marine and her clone. She gripped the hilt of her sword tightly and prepared herself to charge in if she saw any sign of her best friend losing.

It was the only thing she knew that she could do for Marine.

* * *

Jack and Marine's clone took a step back from each other and stood there as they tried to catch their breath. Even the pirate captain could feel himself tiring from their continuous, aggressive fighting. Still, neither of the two would yield to the other knowing that if they did, everything would be over. As they waited for their strengths to recover from their previous spar, Marine's clone felt her irritation slowly lessen from venting it through their fight. She could somehow think clearly and saw that even if they went on with their fight, nothing would happen. Gritting her teeth and clenching her hands into fists, she narrowed her eyes at Jack who stared at her calmly.

"Why? Why are you so persistent in fighting me? What do you wish to accomplish from all of this?" She asked him. "What do you want to gain? Your efforts to save your dear Marine are useless. She will never become her old self as long as I have the bigger half of our souls. Give it up." Jack was about to open his mouth and say something when he heard the sound of running footsteps and the sound of a battle cry growing louder. Marine's clone turned her head to the side and widened her eyes as her look-alike charged at her then swung her sword wide. The clone managed to react quickly and blocked the sword with her own. Then she swung her left leg counter-clockwise at Marine who wasn't fast enough to dodge it and fell to the ground as she blocked the kick with her arm.

"How?! How is this possible? I saw you a few minutes ago and you were still a blubbering idiot!" Marine's clone cried angrily as she watched her other half slowly sit up from the floor. She gritted her teeth and narrowed her eyes low, trying her hardest not to attack without thinking first. "How the hell did you get your old self back?!" Jack stared incredulously at Marine who rubbed her bruised arm and winced in pain as she did.

"Why should I tell you that? You'll just find a way to counter it." Marine replied with half a smirk and half a grimace. Then she pushed herself off the ground and stood to face her clone, her face showed determination and anger. "And you'll pay for calling me a blubbering idiot."

"I'll pay? Me?!" Marine's clone grinned then laughed aloud in amusement. "God you are something else. But then we've always been that way haven't we? Fine then. I dare you to make me pay!" She shouted in challenge. The clone inspected Marine from top to bottom, and set her eyes on the gold glint coming from her hand. When she realized what it was, it didn't take long for her to put two and two together. A smirk grew on her face as her whole body relaxed its fighting stance.

"I see...so that's what probably happened." She muttered. Jack heard this and turned his gaze to the clone for the first time since Marine had arrived before them.

"What do you mean?" He asked.

"It's this gold aztec coin." Marine answered as she raised her right hand, the one that held the gold coin. "As long as I hold this or place it to my skin, I can maintain this sound and solid mind. Somehow it was taken away from you, and it landed somewhere where I could pick it up. I'm assuming that Jack had something to do with that, since you wouldn't drop this gold coin on your own." Marine said as she glanced at Jack and grinned gratefully at him.

"Yes, I seemed to have dropped it in the middle of my fight. And now, I'm going to get it back from you because as soon as you don't have that coin in your possession, you will lose." Marine's clone declared as she suddenly charged at Marine with speed. The female pirate narrowed her eyes at her clone but then jumped to the side at the last minute to dodge the thrust that almost killed her. She rolled a few times before getting back on her knees and glaring at her clone. A cut appeared on the side of her right arm, causing Marine's clone to smirk.

"If you had jumped away a second later, I would have cut off your arm." She said. Marine couldn't press her wound because her hands were full, and so simply let the blood flow down. "You should take care of yourself or you'll die before I can even get that small piece of soul left in you." The female pirate's clone brandished her sword then charged at Marine once more. "That's why you should just give it up and hand over the coin before I accidentally kill you!"

"Gee, we wouldn't want that now, would we?" Marine muttered sarcastically as she stood up and ran before her clone could get to her. "It doesn't matter if I only have that small portion remaining. As long as there is still that small piece in me I'm not giving up. So you might as well stop fighting and let me get your share of our soul before you do kill me. Give me back my soul!" Marine shouted as she attempted to dodge another attack and almost got hit by it. The female pirate's clone twisted around and kicked Marine hard in the stomach, sending her flying back once more. Jack stood there and simply watched the two Marines fight until he saw one of them fall and rushed to her side.

"Tsk...she still has the coin in her hand." Marine's clone muttered with irritation.

"Marine! Are you all right?" Jack asked as he kneeled down beside her. The female pirate sat up and gave a small smile to the pirate captain as she wiped the blood that was slightly dripping down the side of her mouth.

"If you call getting my ass kicked all right then yes, I am doing very well." She said. Jack looked at the bruise and cut on both of her arms then at her as she breathed heavily in exhaustion. He wasn't amused at the way the female pirate was accepting her current state.

"Marine...stop this right now and let me fight in your place. You can't do much in your condition right now." Jack told her. "If you go on it will only be to your disadvantage."

"Do you think I don't know that?" Marine growled. "Do you think I would take all these attacks she's giving me and still think that I'm stronger than her? Jack...my stamina is as strong as that of a kid's. I can't run as fast as I used to. I can't fight well enough because I've lost most of my skills in fighting. I can't make a good shot even if I'm standing a meter away from the target. I can't even defend myself from the attacks that come at me." She turned her gaze to Jack with frustration written all over her face. "You have no idea how annoying it is to stand there so weak and pathetic when you could still remember a time when you were so much stronger."

"And that's why I have to do this now. So that I can get back my old strength. I'm sick and tired of being weak and helpless, and watching you and the rest of the guys fight the hard battles for me." Marine went on as she forced herself to stand up with the strength still left in her. "Strength or no strength, this is my battle, and I'm going to fight without any of your help." She tightened her grip on the gold coin and dropped the sword she held to the ground. Then she ran as fast as she could at her clone while she pulled back her arm and prepared to thrust the coin at the other woman.

"This battle ends now!" She shouted. Marine clone stood there with a smirk as she began running towards Marine as well.

"I agree, it ends now!" Marine's grip on the gold coin became tighter and when she and her clone were at arm's length Marine gave a loud battle cry and began to thrust the coin at her. The female pirate's clone gave an equally loud battle cry as she attempted to grab the item from her. As soon as her hand touched the gold coin, a strong force suddenly pushed the two women away from each other in opposite directions. Marine was taken aback by the strength of the invisible hand that pushed her back and lost her grip on the cursed coin. Jack widened his eyes in surprise as he ran towards the original Marine and held her head gently. He tried to wake her up but then realized that if he did she was going to turn back into a lost unstable woman and decided against it.

Then as he turned his head to the direction where Marine's clone had fallen, he saw her slowly recovering from the shock and the force of the fall and stagger up on her legs. She looked around for the coin and when there was no sign of it, she growled and began to make her way to Jack and the unconscious Marine with a dangerous glint in her eyes and a smirk of triumph on her face.

"I win."

"No you don't." The two pirates turned their heads around to gaze at the rest of the room and saw Will standing not far from them with the rest of Jack's crew surrounding the pile of dead bodies on the ground. "There's no one here to help you now. You lose."

* * *

Marine's clone looked around the room once more to make sure that what the young blacksmith said was true. Although she could care less for the pirates who were working for her and hardly knew each of them by face, she could plainly see that all of the men standing were Jack's men and not hers. Tia Dalma was already cleaning up the room as she picked up the shards of glass and the things that were placed inside them. She gritted her teeth in irritation as everyone surrounded both her and Jack, who was still holding onto Marine. It was obvious that if she didn't escape now, she would lose. Jack stood up, placing Marine gently on the ground, then glared at her too as he raised a pistol at her.

"Drop your weapons and surrender." He said. The female pirate's clone sighed as she did as Jack ordered and placed her hands up in the air. Even if she didn't want to lose, she would be an idiot to try and push her way through Jack and the others. She wanted to save her energy and wait for that moment of opportunity when she could escape them all with ease. Everyone sighed in relief as they watched Marine's clone give up, and slightly relaxed. Elizabeth quickly made her way to where the unconscious Marine was and checked on her vitals.

"Jack is she all right?" She asked.

"She has a cut and a bruise on each of her arm, but other than the fact that she's currently unconscious, she's fine." Jack replied, with his pistol still aimed at Marine's clone. He looked at the blond haired woman then narrowed his eyes in slight confusion and concern. Though it didn't cross his mind until right then, normally it would be Carrie who would arrive first and see if her best friend was all right. "Where is Carrie?" He asked. Elizabeth opened her mouth and was about to answer Jack when she looked around herself and saw that the other blond haired woman was missing.

"That's odd...she was standing beside me just a while ago." She said while she frowned in confusion. The other men began looking around, and the longer they searched, the more worried they became. Marine's clone was also looking around in search of Carrie in fear of being caught off-guard by the blond haired woman. She clenched her hands into firm fists to prepare herself for the worst case scenario. As her eyes roamed about, she caught sight of something at the window that none of the others saw. It had disappeared as quickly as it appeared, making her the only person to see it. A small smirk curled up on her face as she realized what was happening.

After heaving a heavy sigh, she took out a whistle, which was shaped like a coiled snake, that she kept in her pocket and blew on it as hard as she could. Since there was no sound, it took everyone a bit longer to take note of what Marine's clone was doing. Jack turned his gaze to the female pirate's clone and narrowed his eyes.

"What did you just do?!" The female pirate's clone had a sly smile on her face as she shrugged at him in reply then stood there casually as she crossed her arms over her chest and waited.

"I'm simply grabbing my opportunity to escape."

"What?!" Before Jack could go on with his exclamations, he and the rest of the people inside the shack were thrown back by a sudden strong force. Pieces of wood flew right and left, together with what remained of Tia Dalma's things and trinkets. The pirate captain could hear the sound of a beast's loud roar before he fell into the water with a loud splash. At first his body didn't immediately react to what had happened. Jack was in a great state of shock that he couldn't think clearly. Then slowly his instincts to survive kicked in as he lost the remaining air he had in his lungs. In a few seconds he knew which way was up and down in that dark, murky water and swam upwards towards the surface as quickly as he could. His head pushed itself from under the water and he inhaled a grateful, deep breath as he felt air rush into his lungs to his relief. Once he was sure that he wasn't going to die, he looked around him to try and look for Marine or the large sea snake he knew the female pirate called on. Instead he saw what was in front of him and couldn't believe what he was seeing.

Tia Dalma's shack had been destroyed; not a single piece had survived the sudden attack and were probably half-way down the depths of the lake. He was still gazing at the sight when he heard a few splashes of water and the sound of someone gasping for their breaths. He turned his head around and first saw Norrington breaking out of the surface of the water and looking around him with a surprised expression that had probably been on Jack's face earlier.

"What on earth...?"

"She got to us." Jack answered for him. "Where are the others?" As if asking about them was a summons, Jones appeared from under the water, followed by the rest of his men who, to his relief, were safe and unharmed from what had happened. It took a few more minutes before Will went up, trying to keep Elizabeth and the unconscious Marine afloat. Jack swam towards them and took Marine from the young blacksmith then checked to make sure she was still breathing. He heaved a sigh of relief when he saw that she was doing all right before he looked around as one more person came up from the water. Relief and irritation swam through Jack's whole body as he saw the young blond haired woman cough out water and wipe her face with her hand. She turned her gaze at him and grinned as if nothing wrong was happening.

"Hey guys! That was some insane destruction huh?"

"How can you act so bloody calm when Tia's house was just demolished by a large, monstrous beast?!" He asked her. Carrie laughed and scratched the back of her head with a sheepish grin.

"I'm sorry. That crash took me by surprise. I guess I'm still in a state of shock that I can't really make a reaction to it." Afterwards she donned a serious expression on her face as she looked at the person who was in Jack's arms. "Is she all right? She's not hurt badly is she?" She asked. Jack remembered the female pirate he was holding onto and looked around for any form of land where they could step on. Then he began to swim in one direction while motioning for the rest to follow him.

"She's doing fine. We need to get on land on first then we'll call on the men to pick us up." He said. It only took a few minutes for everyone to get on land and wring the water from their clothes and hair. Jack placed Marine gently down on the ground before standing in front of Tia Dalma and pressing his hands together in front of him while giving her an apologetic smile.

"I'm terribly sorry for what happened to your shack Tia. Perhaps you would like to stay on my ship while I have some of my men work on rebuilding your home." He suggested. The dark skinned witch doctor smiled at him and nodded.

"I would love to, Jack." Her gaze fell on the female pirate as she went on. "And I believe that you shall still be needing my assistance in taking care of this woman. She knows and is familiar with the faces of your crew is she not?" Jack blinked as he realized what Tia said then smiled as he bowed gratefully.

"Your help is greatly appreciated." He was glad that Tia actually planned on taking care of Marine while the rest of them couldn't go near her. Leaving Teague on his own with Marine didn't sink too well with Jack even though he knew that the older man was capable enough. The dark skinned woman nodded at him once more then made her way to Marine while Jack looked at the rest of his crew and mates. Norrington was looking around him before he stared at Jack.

"Where is the pirate?" Jack knew who the former Commodore was referring to and didn't bother looking around like the other had done. He had taken a quick look around before he set his sights on what used to be Tia's shack and knew without needing confirmation that it was truly finished...for now.

"She probably ran off together with that snake. To where, I don't know." He replied. "We'll deal with her later. As for now..." He turned his gaze to the rest of his men and spoke in a commanding voice. "Find a boat. Make that three boats. We have to get back to the Pearl as quickly as we can."

* * *

The cold splash of water that hit her face and her limbs soothed her tensed-up nerves as she sat on the back of the giant sea snake. Marine's clone hadn't thought that escape would be so easy to accomplish, but here she was, making a good distance away from where Jack and the others were. The initial plan was to get onto her ship and escape, but when she looked for it together with the men she left behind, she saw that there was not a speck of it in sight. There was no doubt in her mind that Jack and the others had sunk it down to Davy Jones' Locker by now.

She recalled that Maurice had been imprisoned in one of the cells below the deck. A certain level of hope that the man had sunk down together with the ship and drowned to death rose in her. But somehow she sensed that even if she had hoped for it, Maurice would sooner or later appear before her alive and well. The man had not lived throughout these years by simply standing like an idiot. His goal to get back to the other world and make a name for himself with the cursed gold was that strong. And now without Maurice to keep an eye on and without any crew for her to order around, she had fallen back to where she began; alone and confused about what had happened.

This time though, she wasn't confused at all.

As the events that happened a while ago ran through her mind, she couldn't help but clench her hands into fists and grit her teeth in anger and frustration. Everything had gone perfectly well before the fight erupted at Tia Dalma's shack. She had the coin with her, the other half of her soul was practically dead because she took a large half of her, and before Jack and his men had arrived, she had had the upper hand on the situation. But because she took her lovely time in finally getting the small, remaining parts of her other self, she had lost another opportunity to finish the battle. Her hand brushed back the loose strands of black hair that were in her face before holding onto the snake once more. Closing her eyes tight, she took a deep breath and felt herself calm down considerably.

The past is the past, there's nothing else that she could do to change that. But she could always do something about what was going to happen in the future. She crossed her arms over her chest and pursed her lips as she collected her thoughts on everything that's happened. Her other self was still a retarded idiot, but that was only if she doesn't have the gold aztec treasure on her. There was no telling if the other coins would do the same but Marine's clone decided to assume the worst. So that led her to her next question; what was Marine going to do if she gets her mind back to normal? She knew that whatever it was that Marine planned on doing, she was going to have to get herself reinforcements. The first thought that came to her mind was to go to Tortuga again and simply grab control of one of the other ships that happened to dock there. But then another thought came to her as she continued to think.

_The Royal Navy would probably like to have some help in capturing pirates...especially Jack Sparrow and the rest of his men._

It was an idea that she would like to take, but she had to present it in a very quick and straight-to-the-point manner. After all, she was one of the pirates the Navy was chasing after. Excuses and reasons began to fill her mind and she knew without a doubt that she was going to get the help of the navy without any problems at all. A flash of memory suddenly brought her back to one other point that she should take note of. As she remembered seeing the form outside of the window of Tia's shack, she couldn't help but grin wide and chuckle.

"Haha I wish I could see how my other self is going to deal with what's going to come real soon." She said to herself. Then she leaned closer to the snake and patted its head. "We've got our course. Time to move quickly." The snake gave a short but loud roar that vibrated over the surface of the water before speeding up and leaving a trail of water behind it.


	36. Not Always Gold

_**"I do believe that he expects to get something from all of this..." - Tia Dalma**_

**Chapter 36 - Not Always Gold**

It was eerily still on the Black Pearl. Teague could feel it in every fibre of his being. There was something going on at Tia's shack, and for a moment he regretted staying behind while the rest moved to rescue the ladies at the shack. That regret was immediately pushed back and replaced with confidence in his son and the rest of the men who had gone along with him. While Teague was deep in his thoughts, Cornelius stepped up beside the Keeper of the Code and leaned against the railings while looking over the same direction the other man was.

"They'll be fine. Those kids are stronger than we make them out to be." He said. "I have sailed along with them long enough to know that they are well capable of handling themselves in all sorts of situations or problems that arise."

"I wasn't thinking about them." Teague muttered in denial. Cornelius simply smiled and nodded back at him in agreement.

"Of course you weren't." Together the two men continued to stare in silence, until they could make out two rowboats that were headed their way. Neither of them could see who were on the boats, but they had a good idea of who were the people riding them. One of the pirates saw the nearing boats as well and called out to the rest of the crew.

"I see two rowboats headed this way! The Captain is in one of them." He cried. Gibbs went up beside the pirate and took a look with his looking glass. Then he brought it down and nodded to the rest of the crew who were looking at him curiously.

"It's them all right. Prepare the ladder!" He shouted. The whole ship became alive and kicking with activity as men moved to help out and do as the first mate has ordered. In a few minutes, they had things ready for the pirates on the rowboat and watched as Jack came up onto the ship and looked around him. When he saw Gibbs he nodded to him.

"Good work Gibbs. Call for Roderic and tell him to prepare the medicinal supplies. We're going to bring in the men who were wounded in the previous fight. And I want you to gather 5 of our men and tell them to take the two rowboats back to where Tia's shack used to be. They're going to be building her shack back to what it used to be while we set off to do other things. That's right Gibbs. Tell them to do as I say or I'm going to make them clean the hull of the ship for a month! As soon as Norrington and Will get back here with the boats, we set sail for Shipwreck's Cove. Now get to it." He watched as his first mate ran off to do as he was told then turned his gaze to Tia who was the first person to go up, followed by the rest of the women. His eyes settled on Marine who was still unconscious then quickly moved away as they went up to him.

"Take her to my cabin. Get Roderic to see to her wounds while the other injured men aren't here yet. And Tia, please don't let her go out of there no matter what happens." He said. The dark skinned woman nodded at him while Elizabeth turned her gaze to Jack with concern.

"But Jack, what about you? Where will you sleep?" She asked.

"I can sleep with the rest of my crew. It's not like I've never slept there before." He told her reassuringly. Teague and Cornelius walked up to the pirate captain as the women brought the unconscious female pirate to the ship's large, main cabin.

"What happened back there?" Cornelius asked. "And why is Marine injured?" Jack took a deep breath as he rubbed his face his his hands for a few minutes before deciding to answer their questions. As they waited, the two older men could see how tired and stressed out Jack has been and felt sympathy for him. But they didn't take back their questions, knowing that they had to learn of it sooner or later, and that it was better if they knew it sooner.

"During the battle back at Tia's place, I made the clone drop the gold coin that she possessed. And in the middle of all the fights, Marine found that coin and returned to her senses. We found out that as long as the gold coin touches her skin, she'll be able to think normally as herself." Jack began. "She began to fight with her clone, but when they touched the coin at the same time there was this white glow that threw them at opposite sides. Marine lost her hold on the coin and went back to the other, less intelligent side of her. Then when all of the enemy were already dead and Marine's clone was surrounded, she decided to call on the sea snake which destroyed Tia's home. The clone escaped and now we're here on the ship."

"I see...well that makes sense. I remember seeing that happen to Thomas and his clone as well, back in the old days. I believe it has something to do with both of the owners competing for the soul. In order to get the soul of one, he or she needs to be willing. Or for a better term, the person shouldn't struggle with the taking." Cornelius explained. When he finished, Teague turned his gaze to Jack.

"What happened to the coin? Did the clone get it?" He asked. Jack frowned as he shook his head in reply.

"We don't know. The clone was surrounded and couldn't have had the opportunity to get the coin even if she did see it. And because the shack was destroyed, I think that the coin's probably sunken deep in the swamp. No one would be able to get it back now." He said.

"Well it's better than someone else finding it and causing us even more trouble." Cornelius muttered. "So what now? I heard you tell your first mate that we are headed towards Shipwreck's Cove. Why is that?" He asked. Jack was about to open his mouth and reply when he realized something. He blinked for a few minutes and stared at nothing in particular while saying nothing. Then all of a sudden he slapped his face with his hand, surprising the two older men.

"How could I forget?! Of course! It has been here all along! Now there isn't any reason to go to the Cove. Or is there...?" He caught sight of his father raising an eyebrow at him then narrowed his eyes. "Yes, there is still a reason why we are going to Shipwreck's Cove. You are going home now that there is no more reason for you to stay." He said while pointing a finger at his father. Teague shrugged in reply to Jack without a word of objection. Then once Jack was sure that their discussion was over, he walked away from them and towards the storage room where he recalled ordering some of his men to hide a certain chest of cursed coins. The two older men watched him walk off and disappear before Cornelius gave a chuckle.

"He truly doesn't want you around, does he?" Teague smiled back at the other man.

"He's just angry because I keep telling people the most embarrassing stories he's ever experienced in his whole life." He played with the beads and trinkets on his hair as he thought of it more. "And now that I think about it, I haven't told everyone on this ship about the things that boy does in his youth. I believe that special lady of his will enjoy hearing my stories, don't you think?" He said. Cornelius chuckled as he began to picture the scene playing in his mind; with Marine laughing loudly then making fun of Jack, who would probably look like he wanted to kill someone - a certain father to be exact.

"I'm sure she'll be looking forward to that."

* * *

The women entered Jack's dark cabin and gently laid the unconscious Marine on the bed. Things were still messy, with bottles and papers scattered about the room so it took a while for the women to straighten things up in the cabin before they decided it was clean enough for them to stay in. While the female pirate was still asleep, the two other women decided to stay with Tia Dalma and keep her company.

"I know Jack said this already, but we're truly sorry for what happened to you house Ms. Dalma." Elizabeth spoke. The dark skinned woman smiled at the young blond haired woman and shook her head at her.

"Do not call me Ms. Dalma. You can just call me Tia or Tia Dalma if you wish to be courteous." She told her. "And please, I do not blame Jack nor anyone else for what happened earlier. Let us put it all aside now." Her gaze then landed on the female pirate who continued to sleep soundly. Without thinking she brushed back a strand of hair that fell in front of the woman's face. "I noticed that you were all crowding around her during the battle. Has she gone back to her old self?" She asked them.

"Yes, she did turn to her normal self for a short while." Elizabeth replied. "But then the gold coin has to touch her skin at all times if she wants to stay that way. If she loses hold of the coin then she reverts back to the other, less intelligent one. And she did lose it while she was fighting her clone."

"I see...and so what happened to the coin now? Is it with the other?"

"We...we don't know. I don't think her clone has it. But I don't think anyone from our side managed to find it and pick it up." The blond haired woman turned her gaze to Carrie who had been silent this whole time. "How about you? Did you see any sign of the gold coin while we were at the shack?" Carrie shook her head with a small frown.

"Sorry. I didn't find it anywhere. I was immediately taken by surprise when the sea snake shot up from the floor and destroyed the house." She said. "By the way, does anyone know where we're headed now?" Before anyone could answer the question, the door of the cabin opened, revealing Jack as he entered the room. He looked around and couldn't help but notice how clean it was compared to the last time he had entered. Then he settled his gaze at the group of women and smiled at them.

"Thank ye for cleaning up. I appreciate the gesture. Now..." He fished out a cursed gold coin from his pockets, one that had a string tied around it to make it work as a makeshift necklace, and held it out to Tia Dalma. "I have a gold coin here, taken from one of the many coins in the chest of coins that we took. But we're not sure if Marine will revert to her other self if this is placed on her. Therefore I request that you wait for her to wake up then give this coin to her." The dark skinned woman accepted the item from Jack and nodded.

"I shall let you know if it works or not."

"Very good. Also..." His gaze landed on Elizabeth and Carrie. "The whelp has come aboard the ship together with Norry. We are setting sail for Shipwreck's Cove so you best be out now. Wouldn't want Marine to wake up and look at familiar people who will give her headaches now would we?" He held a hand out to the door as if to emphasize on it. The two women stood up and after saying goodbye to Tia, went out of the cabin. Jack made a small bow himself before he shut the door and left Tia Dalma to herself. The dark skinned witch doctor looked back at Marine and decided to pass the time by making a herbal medicine from the ingredients that she had somehow managed to salvage from the shack before it was completely destroyed.

A few hours later the cabin door opened again and Teague entered, holding a tray with plates filled with food and a mug of water. He looked at Tia who was busy making herbs followed by Marine who still hadn't moved a muscle. With a soft clatter, Teague placed the plate down on the table then moved to grab a chair and sit beside the other woman.

"So she hasn't woken up yet?" He asked.

"No...but I could sense that she will be soon." Tia replied. She placed the herb she had made on her lap and looked at the young woman who had suddenly began to groan and mutter. It ended as quickly as it happened, and a few seconds later the female pirate's eyes began to flutter open. She turned her gaze to Teague and Tia, then smiled at them before chuckling to herself for no apparent reason and trying to grab the herb Tia had with curious eyes. The dark skinned woman was quick to react and before Marine could get her hands on the herb, she had pressed the gold coin she got from Jack to the other woman's hand. At first it seemed like everything was at a stand-still as Marine stared at the coin. But soon after, a gleam entered her eyes and she blinked a few times, as if just waking up from her sleep. She looked up at Tia, then at Teague, and finally at the rest of the place.

"Why are you and Edward Teague - I'm assuming he's Teague since he looks a lot like Jack - here in the cabin of the Black Pearl? What happened while I was unconscious?" She asked them. It was Tia who spoke and explained to Marine the events that followed after she lost the coin to her clone. Marine listened to it all in silence, then when the dark skinned witch doctor was done, she looked at the coin in her hand and gave a heavy sigh.

"What an adventure this has been...I'm almost too afraid that it will never end." She muttered sadly. Teague grabbed the tray he had placed on the table and set it in front of Marine to her surprise.

"There is always an ending for every story, no matter how long it seems. But that is the life of a pirate, lass. You're never without an adventure and danger that might make you lose your life." He said. Marine looked down at the food and smiled up at him.

"Yes I know. By the way, is everyone all right? No one's gotten hurt from that fight have they?" She asked worriedly.

"No, I believe that aside from a few minor cuts and bruises, everyone's doing fine."

"I see. Thank you for the food by the way." The older man made a small bow before looking at her again. This time his eyes were lit up with a certain glint of mischievousness that made Marine feel slightly wary of the older man.

"So lass, you seem to know me, but I know not a thing about you. Why don't you tell me a little about yourself?" She blinked at him and raised an eyebrow curiously. But when he wouldn't say anything else after that, she pursed her lips in thought.

"Something about myself? Well...I'm Maria Rianna Nelee, also known as Marine for short. I'm a pirate; more infamously known as Sharpshooter Marine because of my skills with a pistol or anything that has to do with targets. And...well, I'm a person from another world. I'm also a good friend of Cornelius, as you can already see." The older pirate chuckled and nodded.

"Yes, I believe I know that already. Cornelius speaks very highly of you. And so does the rest of this motley crew." He added. "They all seemed worried that you were in a coma." Marine couldn't help but smile upon hearing that. "You've even gotten my son wrapped around your little finger." He went on after seeing the smile. The female pirate's smile immediately disappeared and was replaced with an astonished, flustered face.

"W-w-what?! What are you talking about?" She asked him.

"From what the others have told me, he seemed very upset at the fact that you had fallen into a coma. And I've found out that he would do anything to get you back, even put up with his old man and his most embarrassing tales of the infamous Captain Jack Sparrow." He said this with a very impish grin and a hearty chuckle, which made Marine raise one eyebrow in curiosity. "Truth be told, no woman has ever had such an effect on him before. I should know; I get messages from my friends at Tortuga regularly. And from what I've heard of your story, this is the first time he's ever gotten himself into some sort of dangerous, life-risking adventure without getting some gold or treasure in return...unless you count the cursed coins as treasure."

"I do believe that he expects to get something from all of this..." Tia said with a mysterious smile as she turned her gaze to Marine. The female pirate felt a chill run down her spine as the two older people stared at her with knowing smiles.

"...what are you looking at me like that for?"

"It's nothing lass, it's nothing. You should eat and get some more rest. I'll go and call Jack and the others and tell them that you're finally awake." Teague said. He immediately left before Marine could stop him and question him further. At first neither of the women spoke, then Marine looked at Tia curiously.

"So...where are we headed now?"

* * *

When Teague went out of the cabin he immediately searched around the deck for his son, who he finally found at the helm steering his own ship. The pirate captain gripped the wheel tightly in his arms and was so focused at what was in front of him that he failed to sense the presence of his father as he went up to stand by Jack's side. It wasn't until Teague made a loud cough that Jack was pulled from his thoughts and concentration to look at the source of the noise. He frowned when he saw who it was that disturbed him and he did his best to ignore the other man. After giving a soft chuckle, Teague stepped closer to Jack and smiled at him.

"Relax lad, I just came here to let you know that your precious lass has awakened." That caught Jack's attention as he looked at his father in anticipation.

"And? Did Tia hand her the coin? Is she...?"

"She seems to be in perfect condition. Well, as perfect as it can get. I believe she's quite fed up with this whole adventure." Teague said. "Though I haven't really gotten to know her, I could see that she is someone easy to get along with. I can understand why most of you have taken to her quickly." At first Jack gave a sigh of relief, glad that his idea worked and that Marine could be herself as long as the cursed gold coin was touching her skin. Then he realized that Teague was still looking at him with a strange expression on his face and frowned.

"Well? Is there anything else you need or feel that you must tell me or are you just going to stand there and keep staring at me?" He asked.

"Jack...I must ask you a very personal question." The other man began. "And I need you to be honest with me. Marine seems to me like any other woman you've seen and met in your life. She might be a lot less aggressive than what you normally have, but she's still an interesting character. So what's so special about this one that you'd take such notice of her?" He asked. Do you fancy this lass? Plan to have more than just a simple night with her?"

"Why the sudden question?" Jack asked back.

"Just answer it." The pirate captain narrowed his eyes at his father then shook his head.

"No. I don't think of her that way. And she's not like the women I have at the taverns. She's...a good friend to me."

"I see. Well that's good." When Jack gave him a confused look, Teague smiled. "I don't think it's such a good idea that you, or anyone else for this matter, should fall in love with the lass. You see, though she may be an attractive face and a seemingly strong and capable woman, she is still from this other world of theirs. Once this is all over, she will have to make a difficult decision of staying here for the rest of her life, or going back to where she came from. If she chooses to go back, I have no doubt in my mind that we shall never see her again. We wouldn't want anyone to get hurt do we?"

"You have nothing to worry about!" Jack scoffed. "Rest assured, I'm not going to hurt her feelings or break her heart that way."

"I'm not talking about her." Teague said. That immediately silenced Jack as he narrowed his eyes even lower.

"Well as I mentioned before, no. I don't see her that way."

"All right. I'll go find the others and let them know that she's awake then." Teague said as he began walking down the helm. He stopped half-way towards the stairs to look over his shoulder at Jack, who was staring in front of him with an unreadable expression on his face. He wasn't sure if Jack was telling the truth or not and he couldn't help but pity his son for the situation he's in if he truly was in love with the female pirate. Everyone deserved a chance for love to find them, and he was beginning to wonder if this woman was his perfect match. A loud slam suddenly broke his thoughts followed by a loud voice that could be heard all over the deck.

"Where's Jack?!"

"Marine? Marine! It is you!" Gibbs cried happily as he made his way to her from the bow. "We have all been so worried about ye lass! Are you all right?" Marine looked at Gibbs half-consciously as she continued to look around in search of the pirate captain.

"Yeah, I'm fine Gibbs. I missed you all too. Where's - ? Oh never mind. I see him. I promise to come back and catch up with all of you. How does a round of Liar's Dice sound? Set it up while I have a chat with the Captain." Without waiting for Gibbs to speak, she walked past him and went up the stairs. She first encountered Teague who was looking at her with a curious expression on his face. "Mr. Teague, can I ask you something?" She asked him. The man smiled at her and nodded.

"Go ahead."

"You don't mind staying on this ship for a little while longer do you?"

"Not at all." Jack had heard Marine and snapped his head sharply with an incredulous glare on his face.

"_What_?! No! Absolutely unacceptable." Marine turned her gaze to Jack when she heard him shout then moved closer to him.

"Come on Jack be reasonable! The only reason why you're even bothering to go all the way back to Shipwreck's Cove is because you can't stand to be with your dad any longer. But think about it; this is our best chance to get back at my clone and finally end everything. We have to go after her while we still outnumber her. If we go to Shipwreck's Cove now then return to look for her after, we might end up finding out that she has the Royal Navy chasing after us or worse, have the whole world going for our heads." Jack gritted his teeth as he stared ahead of him and tried to ignore Marine. But the female pirate was persistent and moved around to stand behind the wheel. Her eyes met his with steely determination then she moved closer so Teague wouldn't hear what she says next.

"Quit being such a stubborn, whinny baby and grow up!" She whispered at him. "I don't care if you hate your dad and want nothing more than to kill him. I am not going to let you waste this opportunity because of your bloody affairs." The pirate captain drew a deep breath then exhaled, fighting hard not to shout or to burst in anger at her. Marine could feel Jack's breath on her face and felt an unwanted chill run down her spine. That was when she realized how close they were to each other and moved back from him.

"And how do you propose we find your other half?" He asked her. "We lost her when she escaped with that bloody snake so now we have no direction and no destination to follow." Marine grinned, knowing that she had won this fight, and held out her hand to him.

"It's simple really. We follow the thing that a certain woman might desire the most."

"And that would be...?"

"The snake." Jack raised an eyebrow at her.

"But how are you sure that your clone will be there when we find the snake?"

"I don't. And the truth is, it doesn't matter whether we find her together with the snake or not because even if we don't, we still have to go after the snake. So once we kill off the snake, get its tooth for Tia Dalma, we go look for my clone. And once we've cornered her, she'll have no chance of escaping with the snake already dead." The pirate captain said nothing at first. He stared at Marine with a thoughtful expression on his face. Then with a resigned sigh he took his compass from where it hung and was about to place it on Marine's hand when he stopped and pointed his finger at her.

"On one condition." The female pirate gave a sigh and rolled her eyes.

"Fine. What is it?"

"You're not to go anywhere near my father. Is that clear?" Marine blinked in surprise then looked at Teague who had a very amused expression on his face. The older man had a feeling he knew the reason behind Jack's condition and confirmed it when he saw the pirate captain glaring knowingly at him.

"Why?" She asked Jack.

"Nothing for you to be concerned about. Do we have an accord?" He asked, holding out his hand for her to shake. Marine scratched the back of her head in confusion then shrugged to herself and nodded as she clasped her hand to his.

"Yeah, all right." Jack then turned her hand palm-side up and placed the compass on it.

"Do take care not to break my compass."

"I don't think I can break it more than it already has." Marine said with a smirk as she took it from him and turned around to search for the dark skinned woman. She saw Tia Dalma on the left side of the deck just looking out onto the sea peacefully. The sound of her footsteps as she walked closer brought Tia away from her silent musings and made her turn around to face the female pirate with a smile.

"Well, what can I do for you?"

"You know what this is right? I know you gave it to Jack a few years ago." She held Tia's hand and placed the compass on top of her palm. "I need you to take us to the snake." The dark skinned witch doctor held Marine's gaze for a few minutes until she looked down at the object in her hand and lifted the lid. Jack and Teague were making their way down towards where the two women were and watched as Marine gave a loud cry of triumph and looked over her shoulder at Jack with a smug grin on her face.

"Ha! We have our heading! It's that way!" She said as she pointed to their east. The pirate captain smirked as he searched for Gibbs, who was leading a small group consisting of Elizabeth and the others.

"Gibbs, take the helm and change our course 90 degrees to the east." He ordered. The first mate nodded as he walked away towards the helm. In a few minutes the whole ship was brimming with activity as the pirate crew set off to their new destination. While the rest were working, the others all gathered around for a small and short reunion with the female pirate. Marine smiled as she walked up to the two blond haired women and gave them both a hug.

"Marine! You're back." Elizabeth said cheerfully. "I am so relieved to see you standing upright and not looking around at things consistently like a child."

"You're not the only one who's glad that I'm not retarded anymore." Marine replied with a grin. She looked at Carrie, who said nothing and just smiled back at her. It suddenly made the female pirate feel strange to see the young blond haired woman so silent; she was used to being crushed by Carrie's relieved hugs during their joyful reunions. She furrowed her brows in concern and was about to ask Carrie if she was all right when Jones caught her attention.

"I heard Jack tell Gibbs that the course has changed. Where are we going to this time?" The thief asked.

"We are going after my clone." Marine answered. "In order to do this, I thought of following the snake she's with. And in order to figure out where the snake is, I've asked Tia Dalma to lead us there through this compass you see here." She further explained. When Norrington saw the object and recognized it as the one that Jack owned, he looked at the female pirate doubtfully.

"Isn't that the broken compass that Jack owned? How on earth are you going to look for something with that?" He asked.

"Well, you think that way because you don't know the true power of this compass." Marine said with a mischievous smile. "This compass doesn't point north at all. Instead it points to whatever the holder desires the most." She explained.

"So if Tia wanted the sea snake's tooth badly..." Will began. Marine nodded at him.

"That's right. The compass will point to wherever the snake is. All we have to do is follow the direction the arrow's pointing at." She looked at Norrington when he still had a suspicious look on his face. "If you don't believe me then let's test it out! Hm...what's an easy subject? Ah!" She grabbed Will's arm and pulled him close. "We'll have you hold the compass. Then we'll see the thing you most desire." Tia smiled as she handed the compass to Will. The young blacksmith was slightly reluctant but held the compass and looked down at it with curiosity in his eyes. Everyone else crowded over the object and watched as the arrow spun around a few times before stopping. When they looked up to see where the arrow was pointing at they all saw Elizabeth.

"Well what do you know? It really does work." Jones said. Elizabeth looked at the compass and decided to test it out by moving. To her surprise and relief, the arrow moved when she did, still pointing at her all throughout. The thief held out his hand to Will and jumped up and down excitedly.

"Hand it over here Will! I wanna try that thing too!" Will passed the compass to the thief and waited as he held the compass still in his hand and looked down. When the arrow stopped spinning he looked up and saw the sea. "Where is it pointing at?" He asked in confusion.

"Well what do you desire the most right now?" Carrie asked him. Jones pursed his lips as he thought of it.

"Hm...actually I don't really know." The young blond haired woman sighed as she grabbed the compass from the thief.

"If you're through trying to figure out what it is you desire most then you won't mind if I get this!" She said with a grin. Then she turned her back on him as she looked down at the compass curiously. After a few spins it landed in front of Jack. Everyone stared up at the pirate captain who looked to his sides then looked down on himself. He took a step to the side, a step back to where he stood, a step to the opposite side and then another. No matter where he moved, the arrow kept on pointing at him. He would have continued to try and avoid the arrow if Marine hadn't grabbed his arm and slapped it with the back of her hand.

"Will you stop that?! No matter how much you move, that arrow's going to keep pointing at you." She told him with irritation. Then she fell silent as she looked at Carrie. There were a lot of emotions that ran through Marine, different ones that made her feel like blowing up. But the one that stood out the most was worry. "Carrie..."

"No Marine. This is what I really desire. If it wasn't then it wouldn't be pointing at Jack now would it? You should stop trying to have all the attention to yourself. You're not the only person who admires Jack Sparrow for who he is." She turned her gaze to Jack and took a few steps forward. The pirate captain widened his eyes in fear and surprise as he took a huge step backwards, frightened of what Carrie was going to do to him. But Carrie was quick and managed to make the pirate captain hold onto the compass while keeping him standing still.

"I have to know Jack! What is it that you really desire?" She looked down on the compass and watched it spin in silence. People crowded around Jack with curiosity to find out the same thing Carrie wanted to know. Jack on the other hand was too shocked and stunned to pull away from the young blond haired woman and widened his eyes when the arrow stopped spinning and pointed at something. Everyone's heads looked up at the direction the arrow was pointing and stared at what it pointed to in silence.


	37. Still the Same Old

**AN: **So sorry for the long delay. My schedule's been pretty tight with all the projects, exams, assignments we have. Plus, I do have a life outside of this. But not to worry, I finally finished the latest chapter to The Other Aztec Treasure. I think this may be one of the hardest chapters that I've ever written in this whole story. . I hope I did well enough. Enjoy and please Read and Review when you can!

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_**"It doesn't matter if you're the "clone" or not. You're still the same person on the inside." - Sharpshooter Marine**_

**Chapter 37 - Still the Same Old**

No one dared to start the conversation as they all stared at what Jack Sparrow desired most at that moment. Carrie's lips were set in a thin and very taut line and her eyes lowered until they were narrowed. Marine didn't bother to say anything and didn't move from her spot. Even without more proof everyone could tell that it was her the arrow was pointing at. Her eyes looked up to meet Carrie's, and to her shock, she saw hate and jealousy in those eyes.

"Why...why does it have to be you? What do you have that I don't? It's just not fair!" She cried. "Before we came here you hardly ever mentioned Jack. But you know very well that I liked him; that he was my most favorite character. And to have him here, in the flesh was like a dream come true to me." Marine felt dizzy but forced herself to calm down and think rationally. A step forward caused Carrie to freeze in her spot as she stared at Marine apprehensively.

"Carrie...I don't know what to say." She began.

"Then don't say anything." The young blond haired woman muttered. "I don't want to hear it. It's always you isn't it? No matter where we are, you're always the one shining so perfectly; the one everyone likes and adores because she can do absolutely anything and everything in the world. Me? I'm just nobody; just someone by your side. Your shadow. God you have no idea how annoying it was to hear my parents prattle on and on about you. '_She's a very bright young woman_!', '_Carrie why don't you act more like her_?', '_When are we going to see her again? I would love to have her here again_!' I'm sick and tired of hearing them praise you like you were their own child. I think they wished that they were the ones who adopted you, and not your own foster parents."

"Then when you disappeared, my parents were so worried about you. They always called me, asking me if you had appeared or if there's anything that I've heard that would lead to you. They could care less about what happens to me, as long as you're alive and doing well isn't that right? And this. This whole damn thing was one of the greatest moments of my life! When I first arrived here I was so excited, so happy to get to see all the characters of a movie I enjoyed. And when I could get the chance to meet Jack Sparrow I was more than happy; so happy in fact that if I died right then I wouldn't care. Then everything crashed down when you appeared. I thought that I was the first to arrive here. Finally, I was going to have something that you didn't. Then I find out that you had a past life here. That you were a pirate, and that you had been here even before I was and that you already met Jack. It's just not fair."

"Everyone on this ship likes you. They were worried when you were taken away and when your clone sent you to a state of comatose. And Jack...he wasn't just upset, he was devastated! The spotlight, once more, was on you and it pissed me off to know that even here, you were greater than I am. I wanted Jack to like me. I wanted him to fall for me so I can have my own happily ever after ending. But you wouldn't allow me to have that one small happiness do you? No. You had to step right in and take him away from me just like you took everything else away from me!"

"I...I didn't know you felt that way. I never intended for you to get hurt or to be treated that way." Marine tried to reason out. "Please Carrie, I'm your best friend. All I wanted was for you to be safe from all of what was happening." She left the part out concerning Jack, not yet wanting to deal with him and his 'desires'.

"That's what you want me to think, isn't it? You want me to believe that everything you're doing is all for my good. But I know what you're really trying to do! You're trying to push me away from the spotlight! You don't want me to learn how to fight because you want everyone to think that only you're so great at fighting and at being a pirate. In fact everything you're doing is just to get everyone's attention on yourself and no one else. Those "_I don't want anyone to get hurt so I'll blindly charge at the enemy and sacrifice my life for them_" is just an act for you! You don't even care about what happens to others or how they feel. All you care about is yourself and the attention you get from others." At that Marine narrowed her eyes and slapped Carrie. The sound was sharp and seemed to echo around the ship. Even Jack's crew had stopped working and was watching the scene with curiosity and interest.

"How dare you? How dare you tell me that the things I've done is just an act? Do you think I enjoy this? Do you think I enjoy falling into a coma or having to risk my life repeatedly or watching other people get killed because of me? I didn't want you to get involved in this because I didn't want to risk losing you! If I was truly selfish then I would have wished for everything to end! I wouldn't have to go through all this crap just to save my life and save yours. Your jealousy's starting to sound annoying so get over it and grow up!"

"Carrie! Marine! That's enough. Please stop fighting." Elizabeth said worriedly as she stepped up to the two women. But Carrie was too furious at the other woman to listen to Elizabeth. With a cry of rage she lunged at Marine and grabbed her throat. The female pirate widened her eyes as she fell to the ground with the young blond haired woman on top of her, trying to crush her windpipe with her hands. She grabbed her wrist and struggled to pull them away.

"What the hell Carrie?" Marine managed to croak out. "Let me go!" To her surprise the hands around her neck disappeared before she could fall unconscious from the lack of air. She gave a gasp as she held her neck and coughed, trying to take in as much air as she could while not choking herself at the same time. She didn't know whether to be relieved or worried at the fact that Carrie had obeyed her so quickly. A presence appeared by her side and held her as she continued to cough and breathe deep. After a while she looked up and saw Elizabeth glancing at her worriedly. She was too rattled to think clearly so she focused instead on the one thing that was plaguing her mind. Jack stood before her holding Carrie in a tight and firm grip.

"Jack!"

"Stand back Marine!" Jack demanded, causing the female pirate to freeze in her spot as she gazed at the two with confusion. The others stared as Carrie struggled to be free from Jack's grip. But the pirate captain wouldn't yeild and made her stop wrestling away from him to narrow his eyes at her.

"Since when?"

"Jack..." Carrie spoke up with fear and confusion. "What are you doing? Why are you glaring at me like that? I have no idea what you're talking about."

"Since when have you merged with our Carrie?" He repeated. "You know what this is isn't it?" As he asked this question he brought out a gold coin hanging on a thin rope. "This fell out while you were attacking Marine. Now explain to us how you got this coin and why you didn't hand it over immediately." Marine widened her eyes as she looked at it then to the blond haired woman. The realization came quickly, but she didn't want to believe it.

"It can't be...maybe she just forgot to hand it over. Or maybe she didn't think to hand it over when you gave Tia another coin. There are lots of reasons why Carrie hasn't given the coin to us. Tell them Carrie. Tell them that you didn't mean to keep that from you." She told her. The blond haired woman said nothing as she stared down at the ground. Jack looked at Marine with sympathy.

"I know this is hard for you Marine...but if this was the Carrie we knew, she would have given the coin to us the moment she had it. After all, what reason would she have to hide it unless she plans to give it to your clone when she meets her. There is no doubt in my mind that she's..."

"Don't say it!" Marine shouted as she closed her eyes and pressed her hands to her ears. "I don't want to hear it."

"This is just like you." Carrie sneered. She had stopped struggling against Jack's hold and was enjoying the look of hurt in Marine's face. "To try and block out anything that you don't want or you can't handle. Yes Marine. I'm not the Carrie who was with you the whole time during this adventure. I'm her other, better, stronger and smarter half, and I have successfully taken her into me! Your wish for her to be protected was nothing but lies! What makes you think you could protect her when you couldn't even protect yourself properly?"

"Carrie!" Elizabeth cried angrily. She was about to argue with her when Marine held out a hand to block her and slowly stood up from the ground.

"Jack let her go." The cold tone laced in the female pirate's voice made Jack release the other woman and take a step back. He watched Carrie rub her arms in pain while glaring at him silently. Marine took a step forward until she was face to face with the young blond haired woman. Then to everyone's surprise she bowed her head low and held her arms out to either side defenselessly.

"You're right. It is my fault for putting you into this mess. It's my fault for not protecting you enough. And I'm sorry for everything that you had to go through because of me. I've been selfish, and I failed to see how you were feeling about everything that was happening. If it will make you feel any better, kill me. I don't care whether you stab me, shoot me, or rip me apart. Just do whatever you think you should do." Carrie widened her eyes in shock while everyone else was shouting against it.

"What? No!"

"Are you serious?!"

"Marine are you mad?"

"You can't let yourself get killed like that!"

"Carrie, tell me you're not going to go through with this!" Elizabeth cried. The other blond haired woman said nothing as she stared at Marine in shock. A struggle began in her heart, whether to actually do what Marine has asked and kill her or not to. Why she began to hesitate, she didn't understand. Here was Marine, also known as Vanessa, the woman who was always one step ahead of her; the one who made her life miserable because she could never be as good or better than the other. And she was laying down her life before the other woman.

Will gritted his teeth and took a step forward to keep Carrie from attacking, but a hand on his shoulder prevented him from doing so. He glanced at the owner's hand and frowned when he saw Cornelius looking at him calmly. Norrington, who was about to do the same thing Will was, paused to regard the older man with a frown. The young blacksmith narrowed his eyes at him and was about to open his mouth when Cornelius spoke up softly.

"Let the lasses settle things between them on their own. They don't need us to interfere."

"Are you going to let Carrie kill Marine? Is that it?"

"No. I don't believe that anyone is going to die here today." He spoke with confidence. Memories from the past came rushing back to him as he watched the scene before him. It reminded him of the time Thomas faced his wife Clarissa, who had already been taken by her clone. What transpired back then seemed to be the exact opposite of what was occurring presently. For instead of Marine being the one who was trying to kill Carrie, it was Marine who was giving up her life for what has happened. At the time Cornelius had sided with Thomas and was furious with the woman who was a part of Clarissa. Now that years had passed since then he realized that what they did was wrong. He prayed that what happened to Thomas and Clarissa wouldn't happen to the two women now. "She might be a clone, but Carrie is still Carrie. Every thought and action she makes is a part of who she is." He explained.

"You mean to say that Carrie has thought of these things about Marine, her own best friend, even before this happened?" Will asked incredulously.

"You cannot deny the fact that we all have our little dark thoughts about others - even about those we care for the most - whether they be slight or large. These clones are aspects of those dark thoughts that presides in us. And it seems that Carrie has been very jealous of Marine, though she did well not to show it to others. You see. that is the true power of friendship and love; despite all jealousies and bad feelings people harbor on each other, they push these all aside in order to maintain a deep bond that's stronger than anything else in the world."

As Cornelius discussed, Carrie and Marine continued to stand face to face. The young blond haired woman was still debating to herself whether she should kill Marine or not. As the minutes passed by, her doubts and hesitations began to grow larger. Finally having had enough, Carrie grabbed the hilt of Jack's sword and pulled it out straight from his sheath. Her gaze was intently focused on Marine as she charged and pulled back her arm to take a swing. Everyone had not expected the sudden movement and had a moment's pause before they went forward and tried to stop Carrie.

"Carrie! No!"

Marine waited for death to come; she expected to feel some sort of pain first before she blacked out and never woke up again. But she felt none of that to her surprise. Slowly, her head moved up and she opened her eyes to find Carrie so close to her. Her eyes glanced down without moving an inch of her head or her body and saw the sword the young blond haired woman took from Jack hovering against her throat. She looked back to Carrie and saw that the other woman had tears falling down her eyes.

"I can't...I can't do it. Even if I want to, I can't. I...you're...you're still my best friend." She sobbed softly as she lowered the sword to her side. Marine's heart tugged for her best friend and she took a step forward before wrapping her arms around Carrie and pulling her close.

"I'm sorry I can't be of more help to you." Carrie gritted her teeth hard before pressing her face to Marine's shoulder and crying silently.

* * *

"Are you absolutely sure about this?" Carrie asked as she looked down at the gold coin in her hand hesitantly. They were still standing on the deck, but Jack made sure that the rest of his crew went back to work and stopped trying to pry into the conversation. The only ones who remained were those who were most involved with what was happening. "You're not trying to get me out of here as fast as you can again, just to get all the attention are you?" She asked with one eyebrow raised suspiciously. Marine narrowed her eyes at Carrie.

"Of course not! If I could leave, I would go with you too you know! But I still have things to do here, and I don't want you getting into any more danger than necessary. You've become one again. So you can leave and return to your normal life." She answered. "You don't have to stay here and get hurt for my sake. I only want you to be safe and happy." Carrie frowned at the other woman.

"Aren't you worried about what I'm going to do behind your back? Why are you trusting me with this? I took the other half of the person you know away. I'm a different person now." Marine stepped closer and to everyone's surprise slapped the side of her head lightly. Carrie tilted and blinked in surprise before glaring at Marine angrily and slapping the side of her head back.

"What was that for?!" Another surprise came to her when she saw Marine grin.

"See that? If I had slapped the other Carrie, she would have slapped me too. It doesn't matter if you're the "clone" or not. You're still the same person on the inside, though you harbor the dark thoughts more than the other did. The only reason you and the other Marine are doing all these is because you just want to feel whole don't you? That's the way we feel too. So even though you're the other Carrie, to me you're still my best friend. And I know my best friend is no traitor or backstabber." Carrie gave a soft sigh as she smiled at her.

"You really give me too much credit, you know that?"

"No. I give you exactly what you deserve." Marine replied. Carrie fell silent as she looked down on the coin. Then she glanced at the others with a nervous smile.

"Well then, it's been loads of fun and I enjoyed my time here. I really want to stay longer and be the fangirl that I really am, but I have a life outside this; my parents are probably wondering what's happened to me and Vanessa. Plus, I don't think I can handle living the rest of my life without TV or the internet..."

"We understand Carrie. And we're glad that you're all right. Well, not really all right since you took the other Carrie away. But since you're still Carrie I guess then you're her too so it means you're still okay. Now I'm confused..." Jones muttered as he scratched the back of his head. Carrie giggled at him.

"It's all right. Don't push your brain too much or it'll explode." She teased. "Goodbye Jones. I'll miss your crazy antics." Elizabeth walked up to Carrie and hugged her tightly.

"Take care now Carrie. I wish I could say come back to visit us, but I know that we won't see each other again after this. Even so, I want you to know that I'll never forget you, no matter what."

"I won't forget you too Elizabeth. And I'll be rooting for you as you save Jack from the World's End and finally get married to Will." The young blond haired woman blinked at her in confusion.

"What?"

"Nothing. It's nothing. Just some random ramblings of mine, don't take it seriously." She said as she glanced at Marine with a knowing smile. She moved next to Will and Norrington. "You know Norrington, when your character was first introduced I thought you were an annoying, no-good villain. But now that I've gotten to know you more. I see that you're not such a bad person after all. Now you're on my list of good characters."

"Um...thank you?" Norrington said, unsure of what he was supposed to say. Carrie smiled at him then looked at the two men once more and placed her arms on her hips. "Now, you two better take care of Elizabeth and Vanessa while I'm gone! If they get hurt in any way I'll come back to beat you two up!"

"I promise." Will replied with a smile.

"I thought it was impossible for her to come back?" Norrington asked in confusion. Carrie just laughed and gave a hug to each one before moving on to Teague and Tia.

"I wish I could stay longer to get to know the two of you more. You two weren't as spoken of as I would have wished in the stories. You two are such amazing and interesting people that you deserve to play a bigger role in their plots."

"I wish you could stay longer as well lass." Teague replied with a smile. "You have been a very appreciative audience for me. I enjoyed telling my stories to you."

"I wanted to hear more stories about Jack too. And I wanted to be with the person who had possibly been one of Jack's biggest influences in life."

"He wasn't that much of an influence." Jack muttered. Carrie glanced at him then grinned evily.

"I can't wait to tell people about all your embarrassing and cute stories of when you were younger. I might even decide to write a book about it! I'll call it "The Best of Captain Jack Sparrow!" What do you think?"

"I think you're just jealous of my greatness." Jack scoffed. Carrie smiled and slightly shook her head at him before turning her gaze to Cornelius.

"I'm sorry that you were dragged into this mess." The older man said. "But I'm glad that things came out well in the end. It was a lot better, compared to what transpired with Thomas and Clarissa. I realize now that we should have accepted her the same way Marine accepted you. Maybe things would jave turned out differently."

"I'm glad that things came out this way too. And don't blame yourself for what happened to me. I'm glad that I got dragged into this. If I didn't then I wouldn't meet all these incredible characters and get to know them more." Carrie said as she looked at everyone with a smile. Then she looked back at Marine. "After you get your half, you'll come back right?" The female pirate couldn't answer immediately and was afraid of that fact. She couldn't explain her hesitance, and wondered what would happen when the time came that she had to choose. Carrie could see the other woman's hesitance and smiled slightly. "I see. Don't take too long in deciding all right? Don't keep us waiting. And besides, the longer you're gone, the longer it takes to deal with the cops back in our world. I've noticed that Officer Ramsey's pretty stubborn when it comes to his investigations." Marine winced at that.

"God don't remind me. He has his eye on me and won't stop pestering me till he has all the answers he wants and needs. It's like having something stuck on you with some very strong glue. He'll probably be badgering you too once you get back, so watch out for him all right?"

"I'll think of a good excuse." Carrie promised. "I'll make sure he's got nothing on you or me."

"Well just in case they won't believe whatever you're going to tell them, then tell them what they've been suspicious of from the start. Tell them that I'm in some part of gang or something and that I killed my foster parents when they found out. Tell them that you found where I was and tried to stop me and failed so you ran away from us." Carrie widened her eyes.

"What? No! I can't tell them that! How could they believe something like that?"

"They'll grasp on any reason that'll give them a reason for my disappearance and for my foster parent's deaths. You can't just tell them that you were pulled into another dimension and expect them to let you go just like that. Relax, it's just a precaution. And it doesn't really matter to me if everyone in our world suddenly thinks of me as a murderer. If it means getting you away from the police's suspicion then I want you to do it."

"But they'll hunt you down for the rest of your life! I can't let that happen to you."

"But if they don't believe you and whatever excuse you're going to think of for our disappearance, not only will they be suspicious of me, they'll be suspicious of you. And I'd rather go there myself and declare myself a murderer before I let you get into that mess too. Please Carrie, promise me you'll tell them if your story doesn't work."

"I'll make it work! No matter what. I won't let them chase after you." Carrie said determinedly. Marine sighed and gave up on arguing, settling with that as Carrie's promise. She knew that once Carrie had made up her mind, she wasn't going to back down on it. It was one of the things she had in common with her. They fell silent for a few minutes, then Marine looked at her again with a serious face.

"Listen, I'm sure your parents are as worried about you as they are about me. Maybe even more. You're their daughter. Even though you feel that they're not showering their attentions on you, you should know deep inside that they love you with all of their hearts, and that they'll do anything, even risk their lives for you. You'll see once you get back to the other world so don't be jealous of me anymore all right? You're wonderful and amazing in your own natural way, and I'm sure that someday in the future the perfect prince charming will come sweep you off your feet and give you the much needed attention." She added.

"Thanks. I hope so too. Speaking of which," Without finishing what she was about to say Carrie moved closer to Jack and gave him a hug. The pirate froze and looked down at the blond haired woman nervously as he tried to remove her grip on him.

"Uh...love, you're a wonderful person and all, and I'm flattered with the way you feel about me. But..."

"I know, you don't have to explain or be awkward around me. Your heart's set for my best friend, and I'm glad to know that even you can fall in love with something aside from your ship or the sea. I've known it all this time, but even if I can't be with you anymore, I still admire you and you're still my favorite character." She said as she released him and took a step back. Marine, who was standing to her side, blushed a slight shade of red when Carrie reminded them all of what happened with Jack and the compass. "I'm glad I got to know you a little more and got to hang around with you for a while. It was really fun. But if you hurt Vanessa in anyway, I'll come back and beat you up too! Savvy?" Jack gave the blond haired woman a small, nervous smile.

"Savvy." Once Carrie was satisfied with Jack's answer she turned her gaze to Cornelius.

"So...how exactly do I work this thing? Is there a button on this coin or a magic word I have to say to open some kind of portal?" She asked.

"Well...I honestly don't know. When we sent young Marine to the other world we just placed the coin around her neck and she automatically vanished." Cornelius said as he glanced at the female pirate. Marine narrowed her eyes at him and crossed her arms over her chest.

"You can't possibly expect me to remember what I did back then do you?" She asked rhetorically. Cornelius chuckled at her.

"No, of course not. But I believe that you and Carrie should know the answer to moving from one world to another yourselves, or at least have an idea of it. After all, you both arrived here with the coin at least once." Carrie blinked then pursed her lips in thought.

"Well, I was holding onto the coin when I got transported here. It had been a week since Vanessa disappeared and I was just thinking of wanting Vanessa to come back after hearing the news of her foster parent's deaths. Maybe the coin heard my thoughts and decided to bring me to where she was, which turned out to be here in this world." Carrie explained. Marine frowned as she recalled her own events.

"I had it around my neck at the time. It was right after the funeral of my foster parents...I was standing before their graves and I was thinking of them. I was thinking that the coin was the only thing linking me to them because they were the ones who gave it to me. Maybe because my real parents were the ones who truly gave it to me, my thoughts were somehow misinterpreted and caused me to arrive here in this world again." She muttered.

"Strong feelings like grief and longing would probably bring forth the coin's powers more." Cornelius said. "Perhaps you should wish to return to your own world. You should give it a try." He told the young blond haired woman. Carrie nodded as she looked down at the coin thoughtfully for a few minutes.

"Then I guess that's it." Carrie said as she turned her gaze to Marine once more. "Vanessa...I'm so sorry for everything I've done and said. We're still friends right?" The other woman smiled and nodded.

"The best." The blond haired woman smiled brightly and looked at the rest of the group who were there to see her off.

"I'm going to miss all of you, but I won't forget any of you I promise. Goodbye and take care." She closed her eyes, and attempted to do as Cornelius suggested by wishing to return back to her own world. Everyone watched as a white glow began to surround the blond haired woman. Her body slowly began to disappear, but right before it did, they all heard the sound of a shot being fired. Marine widened her eyes and could see blood splattering all over Carrie as a bullet went right into her left chest. She felt her throat run dry and her whole body freeze with fear as she stared right into Carrie's wide, surprised eyes right before she disappeared into thin air. The gold coin she held in her hand fell to the ground with a soft clinking sound.

Marine could hear people screaming and shouting, felt them running all across the deck. There was a loud thud as someone jumped on top of another and fell to the ground, but she didn't take note of all of these. Her eyes were glued to the spot where Carrie had disappeared; at the spot where she was shot. She could see a few drops of blood on the ground. Carrie's blood. Then her attention was called away from it when she saw men struggling against a man in tattered clothing. There was a gun being held tightly by the man, a gun that showed signs of having been recently fired. When her eyes met his, she could see nothing but satisfaction in them.

Recognizing the face of Maurice and seeing such an expression on his face made Marine's vision go red. Without thinking she took out her sword and began striding towards him filled with nothing but the intent to kill. Will and Jones, who were the ones holding the other man down, caught sight of Marine and widened their eyes when they realized what she was about to do. Jones pulled Maurice back while Will moved around to protect the man from the front while he faced her with concern.

"Marine, no! You don't need to do this. There's no point in killing him."

"**'.**" Marine spat. "Get away or I'll kill you too." She threatened. When Will wouldn't move, she pulled her arm back in an attempt to strike. Norrington came up behind her just in time to grab the arm wielding the sword.

"Calm down Marine." The female pirate glared at him, and the former Commodore moved a few inches back with surprise at the fury in her eyes.

"Calm down? **_Calm down_**?! This bastard just killed my best friend and you expect me to calm down?! I won't let him get away with this! I'm going to kill him! But I'm going to make sure he lives as long as he can while I give him the most painful torture ever. I'll make a cut on every part of his body I can get my hands on then pour salt all over him! I'll step on him and break his bones into tiny pieces. I'm going to tear him apart limb by limb, starting with the parts that will still leave him alive. He's going to pay for this! **He's going to die**!!!" She screamed as she struggled with Norrington's hold. The other man was still taken aback by the fierce expression, but he managed to keep holding onto her. Cornelius came up in front of Marine and held her arms as well.

"God damn it let me go! He killed Carrie! That fucking bastard killed her! I won't forgive him! I'll never forgive him!" She shouted. "He killed Carrie! He killed her!" Then as if struck with a calm thought, she looked at Cornelius. "Get someone to go to my world. Make them get to Carrie and take her to a hospital! If we can get to her on time she might still make it."

"Marine, you're not thinking carefully. If we make someone from this world go to the other side the effects of it might be bad. We don't even know if they'll make it there or not." Cornelius told her in a calm voice.

"Then get _him_ to do it!" Marine shouted as she pointed at Maurice with her sword. "Make him go there and bring her to a hospital! Make him do it!"

"Marine..."

"Don't just stand there like an idiot! We have to save her! If you're not going to go save her then I will!"

"You can't! If you try going through the portal you'll end up dead!"

"I don't care!! I'd rather die than let Carrie die like this!! I won't let her die!! I have to save her! She might still be alive on the other side, waiting for me to help her! Let me go!!!"

"Jack! Calm her down!" Cornelius shouted as Marine wrestled herself out of the two men's grip. Despite being supposedly weak, the two men were finding it very hard to keep Marine steady. It was as if her anger fueled her body and made her stronger than usual. Cornelius saw Jack headed towards them and stepped aside anxiously. He watched as the pirate grabbed the black haired woman's shoulders and looked intently into her eyes.

"Marine. Listen to me. I'm sorry, but there's nothing we can do. She's...she's gone."

"No...No! It's not too late! If we go save her now, we might - " She was interrupted when Jack pulled her to his chest and wrapped his arms around her. The pirate captain said nothing, but Marine felt it stabbing into her heart like a knife. She shook her head repeatedly, the tears spilling down her cheeks, as she grabbed a fistful of Jack's shirt and buried her face deeper, causing the sword she held to fall to the ground with a clatter. Jack closed his eyes and tightened his arms around her as Marine began screaming and crying loudly in pain.


	38. Heavenly Intervention

**AN:** Hi there! I'm so sorry that I only updated now. I've been so busy with school that I couldn't find the time to write and update. I did try my best to squeeze it in and so I've finally finished the latest chapter. Siibi has been asking for a romance but unfortunately the flow of the story didn't allow me to put in a romantic moment. Maybe in the next chapter...*winks* So without further ado, here's Chapter 38! Read and Review and Enjoy XD

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_**"You are not alone my love. You will never be alone in this world." - Clarissa Silvestre**_

**Chapter 38 - Heavenly Intervention**

"How is she doing?" Jack asked as he watched Tia Dalma and Elizabeth walk out of his cabin that night. He watched the two women's reactions, tried to see if he could find an answer through their expressions and their movements. The two behaved calmly and normally enough, though they seemed to be slightly exhausted. After all, taking care of Marine for the past week would take its toll on anyone. Elizabeth answered Jack by shaking her head slowly, with a small frown on her face.

So there were no improvements, but at the same time there weren't any bad news either. Jack didn't know whether to be glad or to be disappointed at this. Carrie's death was a harsh blow to anyone, especially to her best friend Marine. Of course he understood if Marine was feeling depressed about what had happened, but he felt that this was taking it too far. It had been a week already, and still she was isolated in Jack's cabin; refusing to eat or go out or do anything at all. Everyone had attempted to go into the cabin, one by one, to try and convince her to stop mourning. But even Jack himself couldn't bring her out of her depression.

"Jack...I'm worried. What's going to happen to her?" Elizabeth asked as she bit her lip. Jack felt himself be brought out of his thoughts and smiled at her reassuringly.

"Don't you worry love. Nothing shall befall our young damsel as long as I am here." He replied. Though deep inside he wasn't too sure himself. Was Marine going to ever be all right? Could she get out of this grief that had settled on her self? He looked back at his cabin then took a deep breath as he forced his legs to move towards it. "I'll go and keep an eye on her. You and Tia head to the galley and have yourselves something to eat." He didn't wait to hear their replies and entered the dark and gloomy cabin. It felt like walking into a sick person's room, and perhaps that was it really was. When he entered he looked around, with only the light of the candle on the table his only source of vision, and stopped when his gaze settled on the young woman sitting on his bed, with her legs folded against her chest and her arms wrapped around tightly.

He couldn't help but feel guilty at the ropes that they had tied around her hands and to the edge of the bed, as well as the rope wrapped around her waist and to the other end of the same bed. There was enough rope there to let her move her whole body freely, but the one thing Marine couldn't be able to do was to bring her hands to her neck; to where the cursed gold coin was hanging with a string. During the first few days she had repeatedly taken the coin away from her body and threw it as far away as she could. They had already lost a few to the sea, and because they couldn't afford to lose more, they decided to hold her down. She looked like a trapped child on that bed; so fragile and weak.

"Hey there love. It's me, Jack Sparrow. Remember me? The gorgeous, wonderful pirate of your dreams." He said cheerfully as he made his way across the room towards the bed. He sat on the edge and looked at Marine who seemed to be looking straight ahead of her at nothing in particular. "Tia's really helpful in our navigating, with the compass in her hand and all. Somehow it seems that we are being led to some place near Tortuga. We won't be there in another few weeks though, so all we can do now is sit here and wait." All throughout his monologue Marine didn't speak nor did she move. It was like talking to a life-sized doll. A few minutes after the heavy silence Jack sighed and opened his mouth to speak.

"Listen Marine - "

"Stop. Just stop it." The soft voice of the other woman in the room spoke up. Jack would have entirely missed it if he hadn't seen her mouth move. Her voice sounded so cold, so distant and so languid that it suddenly made Jack angry.

"What do you mean stop?! Stop trying to help you? Stop trying to get you out of this hold you've buried yourself in? Marine I've had enough! Carrie's dead! She's dead do you hear me? She's not coming back! Just like your foster parents. They'll never come back too! But if you think that you'll achieve anything by killing yourself too then you're wrong! Everyone else experienced the same thing don't you see? They all lost someone they cared. But do you see them moping around? No! They're all struggling to live. Struggling to move on even after what happened. That's what you should be doing!" He shouted at her angrily. Marine still didn't move from where she was. It irked Jack to no end.

"So you're just going to sit there and stare in front of you for the rest of your life is that it?" Jack gritted his teeth. "Say something you bloody woman! Get mad at me! Shout at me and tell me I'm wrong or that I wouldn't understand you! Cry! Laugh! Punch me! Just do something!"

"If Elizabeth died..." Marine began. Jack fell silent as he looked at Marine who slightly turned her head to gaze at the pirate. "If she died...do you think Will would be doing the things you're telling me I should do? Do you think, after someone you love and hold dear to your heart died, you would be able to stand up and move on as if nothing like that ever happened? How about you? If someone you loved died, would you have the strength to do all those things? Or would you do something entirely different?" A sudden image of Marine, cold as snow and still as a rock came flying into Jack's mind. He could feel his heart wrench at the thought of how close he had been to losing Marine then and shook his head to take away the image from his mind.

"I..." He didn't know how to answer her. Even she could see it in his expression; that if it had happened to him, he would probably be as depressed as she was. She turned back to gazing at the front; at nothing in particular, and didn't hear the sound of footsteps nor the sound of the door closing as Jack wordlessly went out of the cabin and leaned against the door. He saw Tia and Elizabeth making their way back to him, and saw worry in their expressions.

"Jack? Are you all right?" Elizabeth asked.

"I can't do it."

"Pardon?"

"I can't do it anymore."

"What on earth are you talking about?" Jack placed a hand to cover his face as he went on.

"This...this futile attempt to bring Marine back from whatever depression she's fallen into. I can't try to bring her back anymore." Tia and Elizabeth widened their eyes in surprise and disbelief, but it was the young blond haired woman who asked.

"Why? What happened back there Jack?"

"I...she...while I was there inside that cabin she asked me a question that was impossible to answer. She asked me if I would recover, should the same thing happening to her happen to me. She told me what I would do if the person I cared for and loved died. And I...I couldn't tell her the same things I was trying to tell her before. If it happened to me...if she suddenly died...I...I don't think I could recover either." The two women somehow knew who Jack was speaking of and looked at him concernedly.

"But it will happen, if this goes on, won't it Jack?" Tia asked him. "If she continued to fall deeper into this depression, she would surely die. Can you live with yourself knowing that you had failed to keep her alive?"

"Then what am I supposed to do?" Jack snapped at her as he looked up at the two women. "Tell me what I should do to bring her back!" Elizabeth also glanced at Tia helplessly. Everyone knew that no matter how hard they tried, they just couldn't help Marine then. At first, the dark skinned woman said nothing to either of them. Then after a few minutes had passed she took a deep sigh and looked up at them.

"There is a way to help her, though I don't know if it will do any good or if it will only make her worse. But I am willing to do this, because you are a good friend to me Jack Sparrow, and I have found young Marine to be a very charming and interesting woman. I do not wish to see her demise be something as disappointing as this. She deserves to die happy and content." The two looked at Tia in surprise.

"What? What is it?" Elizabeth asked.

* * *

Marine had no sense of time in that tiny cabin she was in. Everything was dark inside; the doors and windows were shut tight and the curtains were drawn. She didn't feel like looking at the sunlight and didn't want to. The darkness suited her perfectly, together with the mood she was in. She didn't know whether it was day or night, and how long it has been since she was brought into the cabin. She didn't know, and could care less. Nothing mattered anymore. The image of Carrie as she fell back into the portal, with a hole through her chest and blood all over her shirt, ran through her mind repeatedly like a broken record. It was torture, and at the same time, she didn't want to forget it. Every single detail that was Carrie was etched into her mind, as long as she could remember that event. She feared that if she pushed away what had happened, then she would forget how Carrie looked like as well.

Everything about that day was fresh in her mind, as if it had only happened yesterday. The colors of the ship and the sky, the faces of the people aboard the ship, the sounds of the birds and the grunts of the crew as they worked to set up the sails, the feel of the gentle sway of the ship as it floated on the surface of the water, the smell of the ocean mixed with the smell of sweat and perfume. She closed her eyes, took in a deep breath, and immersed herself into the same scene she fell into every single minute of every single day.

There she was, standing in front of Carrie who held the gold coin in her hands. For some strange reason she was aware of everyone else who was there. Will and Elizabeth were standing side by side. Teague and Cornelius were by the railings, probably having their own private conversations now that they knew there was no immediate danger to anyone on the ship. Tia and Norrington were there as well of course, and who could forget Jack? Dear Jack Sparrow was standing right by her side, hovering beside her protectively like some sort of bodyguard. Before she would have probably warmed at the thought that Jack was that worried about her. But now all she could feel was an emptiness inside of her.

She remembered everything that happened; every word that was uttered and every movement that was made. Therefore she was taken aback, the first emotion she had ever felt after what happened, when she saw that not everything was happening as she expected them, remembered them to be. Instead of simply Carrie who was shot, everyone else was shot in that one single "bang" that echoed around the ship. She widened her eyes as everyone fell to the ground of puddles of blood forming below them. She could see all of their faces in different forms of agony. Some were reaching out their arms to her with a cry of help. Shaking her head and taking a step back, Marine tried to run away from it all, but found that she couldn't.

An invisible wire tripped her, making her fall to the ground with a loud thud. She landed on the deck but made no move to stand back up as she pressed her hands to her ears and shut her eyes tight. She prayed that everything would disappear. She wished that no one had ever died. At the same time, she wished that she herself were dead, so that nothing would bring her pain or suffering anymore.

"Tsk. Tsk. Tsk. You have such a little, overactive imagination."

A voice, sounding like an angel who was singing a melodious song, reached her ears. Curious, Marine opened her eyes and removed her hands from her ears. She looked around her and saw that she wasn't on the ship anymore. Everything around her was white; there was nothing she could see that signified a boundary to her vision. It just went on and on like an infinite loop.

"What are you doing, trying to punish yourself further by repeating the same event over and over again?"

"Thomas, calm down. I'm sure she is just very sad to see her friend go like that." Marine swiveled her head around to the two voices and could hardly believe her eyes. There standing not far from where she was, were her mother and father. Thomas smiled at her as he gave a slight wave.

"Hey there my little Marine. How are you doing?" Marine found herself at a loss for words. She felt her throat suddenly go dry and her brain suddenly ceace to function. Without thinking she stood up and ran towards them, wrapping her arms around the couple before giving a loud wail. She couldn't believe that they were standing before her like this but they felt so solid and so warm that there was no denying the fact that they were there. She didn't bother asking how this happened or tried to figure out the logic in this phenomenon. All she wanted right then was to be enveloped in the arms of her parents and stay that way forever. But after a few minutes passed the couple pulled away from Marine, who frowned at the two.

"What? Why...no. Don't stop." She told them as she clutched at their hands tightly. "Don't leave me here alone."

"Marine...you have to understand that we have to leave sooner or later." She growled at them as she narrowed her eyes angrily.

"Then why bother coming here?! What do you want to accomplish by reminding me that you two are gone in my life? Are you two here to remind me that everyone I ever cared for would die because of me?"

"Marine...."

"Why did the two of you have to go? Why did you two leave me here alone to fend for myself? Why did you have to take away my foster parents and my best friend from me? WHY?" She screamed at them as tears fell down her eyes down to her chin.

"We're here to remind you that not everything is permanent." Thomas told her with a firm, unwavering voice. "Everything on this world, and everyone living here must one day return to where they came from, do you understand?" Marine said nothing as she turned her gaze away from the couple. The man took a deep breath and closed his eyes before he began once more. "My daughter, I know that things have been very tough on you for the past few months. I can't even imagine how much. But you are strong Marine, and I know that you will have enough strength and will in you to move on."

"What if I don't want to? What if I've had it with all this suffering and pain? Didn't you ever think that maybe I'm not as strong as you make me out to be and that I want to end everything so that I wouldn't have to deal with it any longer?"

"There is something that you must know Marine. Do you remember Cornelius' story? About how Clarissa had been taken away by her clone? I wanted to kill her. I wanted to make her suffer for taking away the love of my life then I wanted to take away my own life, so that I could be with her once more. It was very tempting, and I wanted to do it as soon as possible so that all the pain and suffering that was going on in my heart would go away. But I didn't."

"And why didn't you?" Marine asked.

"Because I still had something living in the world that I had to protect and take care of." The other man replied with a smile. "And that was you Rianna. You're the one that gave me reason to continue living when everything else had been taken away from me. Then I realized that it was wrong of me to think of dying, because I still had purpose in my life. So the same goes to you. There is a reason that your best friend is gone and yet you aren't. You still have something left to do in the living world. So you must do it and make the most of what has been provided to you; live each day like it would be your last." At first Marine looked down on the ground and said nothing. Then after a few minutes she looked up once more.

"What if I can't do it? What if I'm not strong enough?"

"Don't worry Marine. You're my daughter! The stubborness in us is strong enough to make us keep standing even when we are in the depths of hell. I believe that you will make it no matter what happens." Clarissa stepped forward and wrapped her arms around Marine.

"You are not alone my love. You will never be alone in this world. Your father and I, your foster parents and your best friend as well, will always be there in your heart, supporting you and guiding you in whatever path you decide to walk through. And you will have your friends who right now are very worried about you. Can't you see? They want you to recover from this ordeal and they will do anything to help you in your trials. And need I remind you of the man who has captured your heart, and you, his? He is as worried about you as everyone else, maybe even more." Her parents didn't need to tell her who they were speaking of but she didn't say it as she looked away in embarrassment. Clarissa stepped back then clasped Thomas' hand as the two looked back at her.

"Marine, we want you to know that we love you with all of our hearts, and we are very proud of what you have become." Thomas said.

"Take care Marine. And always remember that we will always be there with you no matter where you are." Clarissa said. Marine felt tears fall down her face as she was engulfed in a bright white light and fell back asleep.

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What had once been a satisfying darkness that shielded her from the waking, living world was now a hindrance to Marine's sight as she tried to look around the cabin. She woke up on Jack's bed with tears in her eyes and a lightness in feeling like a heavy burden had been lifted from her shoulders. She could still feel the gloom and the depression that hovered inside the room and couldn't help but shiver slightly. She didn't think that she had been that bad, but she could see that it was even worse than she first thought.

Wanting to know if she had indeed gotten rid of most of the grief that was keeping her all depressed and sickly, she closed her eyes and remembered Carrie. There was a pang in her heart along with the urge to cry, but it wasn't as bad as the previous times. This time she felt that her head was clear enough for her to think of something aside from the death. The sudden rumbling in her stomach told her the same as well. She tried to get out of the bed but forgot that there were ropes tied to her and found herself being pulled back onto the mattress.

"Ack!"

The sound she was making woke up whoever was in the room with her, and when she glanced at the edge of the bed she saw that it was Will. The young blacksmith's head shot up at the sound and the movement and swiveled left to right frantically to try and figure out what had caused the commotion. When he saw Marine lying sprawled on the bed he stood up and stared at her warily, prepared to fight her if she was going to try to escape him. Marine blinked at him then raised an eyebrow and smirked.

"You actually think that you stand a chance against me blacksmith?" She said in a teasing tone. Will was taken aback and let his hands fall down to his sides in his shock.

"M-Marine?"

"That's my name." She replied as she righted herself and sat cross legged while she looked at him. "Now if you don't mind, could you take these things off me so I can go and get something to eat? I'm starving." Will still couldn't believe what he was seeing as he continued to stare at her. Marine sighed and rolled her eyes at him. "Aww come on. It's not like I'm going to kill you, or anyone else for that matter, if you release me. All I want is something to eat."

"I...you...you're speaking again."

"It's not like I couldn't speak before." She replied with a pout. "It's just that I chose not to."

"I...I don't understand..."

"You don't have to. Oh fine! If you don't want me to get out of this bed for now, why don't you go out and get me something to eat? Plus a bottle of rum would do nicely. What are you waiting for? Hurry up!" Will blinked before nodding dumbly and walking out of the cabin as if in a daze. Marine wondered if Will really was in the right mind to do as she asked and feared that he was still in shock and too out of it to get her something to eat. She attempted to cross her arms and felt a sharp pain on her wrist when they pulled back. Looking down, she observed the ropes that were tied around her wrist and frowned. They were red and bruised from all the pulling and tugging she tried. Most of what had happened during the time she was depressed were blurry in her mind; all she could remember were the feelings and the pain she felt. She didn't want to remember them either way, so she just let it go like that.

Minutes after Will had gone out, Tia and Elizabeth came in bearing a tray of what she thought was the most delicious meal she has ever smelled. Then again anything edible would have smelled good to her at that time. The two women walked further into the room and looked at Marine with worry and hope. Marine looked back at them and gave a small embarrassed smile.

"Uh...thanks." She muttered.

"Marine...are you..."

"I'm fine. I'm all right now, thanks for asking." Marine replied, interrupting Elizabeth as she gave a deep sigh. "It still hurts of course, but I guess you could say I've gotten over most of the grief. Can you remove these things?" She asked as she gave a slight tug at the ropes on her hands. "They're starting to be a pain." Tia nodded as she did as Marine asked while Elizabeth moved to get some medicinal supplies to treat the wounds on her wrists. Then once Marine was free, she greedily grabbed the tray they brought and began to bite at the chicken and vegetables they prepared. To her delight they also brought a bottle of rum which she half-finished with just one go. While she ate, Elizabeth and Tia sat down with her.

"What made you suddenly decide to...you know, stop?" The young blond haired woman asked. Marine chewed on a piece of meat as she pondered on Elizabeth's question.

"Well you wouldn't believe it...but I met my mother and father in my dreams. They slapped some sense into me - not literally Liz, geez - so as I was saying, they talked and convinced me to stop moping about and get back to living like a normal person...or as normal as I could be." She explained to them. Elizabeth smiled as she glanced at Tia Dalma who had a knowing smile on her face.

"Then it worked Tia!"

"I believe it has." Marine looked from one woman to the other and tilted her head to the side in confusion.

"What are you two talking about? What worked?"

"Yesterday we were so worried about you and how you might never come out of this grief and sadness, that we decided to take drastic measures." Elizabeth explained. "It had become really bad, to the point that Jack himself had given up on trying to bring you out of your grief. You shoud have seen him Marine. He was so upset with himself." Marine glanced away at the mention of Jack. That was still a pretty touchy and awkward subject that Marine didn't feel like delving into at the moment.

"Uhh...yeah. Okay. So back to what we were discussing..." The young blond haired woman smiled even wider when she saw Marine's reaction. But she said nothing about it and went on with her explanation.

"Oh right. So when it looked like there was no hope, Tia decided that she had to do something to bring you out of your grief. So she made this potion and said that its smell would help you." Marine blinked then looked at Tia in confusion.

"Smell?"

"It was to bring you in a death like state. I had your body push you out temporarily so that you may make your way to the world after life, where you met your parents. I surmised that something like that may be of help to you." Tia explained. When Marine finally understood, she smiled at the dark skinned witch doctor.

"Thank you Tia. For everything."

"It is a pleasure to help you my dear." Tia replied. "And I'm glad to find that my efforts were not in vain." Marine smiled at her then look down at the tray on her lap. She had finished eating and was emptying the bottle.

"I'm really sorry...for bringing this all on you guys. I didn't know what I did before, but I had a vague idea that you guys had a pretty hectic time trying to take care of me. I'm grateful to you all, for putting up with me."

"You don't have to thank us for that Marine! We were very worried about you so we did what we thought would help you." Elizabeth said.

"Thank you, either way." Marine finished off the remains of the bottle then yawned loudly as she stretched her limbs. "Well now that that's over and done with, I guess it's time for me to get out and face everyone on board. I'm sure everyone's tired of all my dramatics and special treatment aboard this ship." Elizabeth gave her a small smile as she nodded slightly.

"I suppose what you say has some truth in it." Marine chuckled at the blond haired woman then stood up from the bed. Elizabeth and Tia followed after the female pirate as they went out of Jack's cabin into the main deck of the Black Pearl. The sunlight streaming down on Marine's face made her give a loud sigh and stare up at the sky with a smile.

"Ahh...it's been a while since I've felt the sun's rays." She said to herself. "It feels good." When she looked back on the ground she saw Will making his way towards the group. For a few minutes the young blacksmith said nothing and simply stared at her. Then with an embarrassed smile he scratched the back of his head and nodded to Marine in acknowledgement.

"Um...it's good to see you in better and brighter spirits Marine." He said. Marine smiled back at him as she stepped forward to give him a hug.

"Thanks Will. And I'm sorry for making you feel embarrassed or awkward around me earlier. It wasn't fair to you since you didn't expect me to recover that suddenly." Will chuckled as he stepped back from Marine and shook his head. The awkwardness between them vanished the moment Marine had smiled at him. "And thanks for everything you've done for me. I promise to pay you back somehow." She added.

"Hey!! Since you're mentioning paying back people for all their hard work, you might as well start off with me!" A voice cried. They all turned their gazes at Jones who was making his way towards the group with a grin on his face. Marine smiled at him as he held out his arms towards her. "Well how about that? I haven't seen you smile for a week. I guess I can count that as a part of your payment to me." He added in a teasing manner. She smiled even wider and went up to him to give him a hug.

"We'll take the rest of my payment to you out from your debt to me. How's that?" Jones laughed and after hugging her, slapped her back playfully.

"Now that's definitely my Marine!" The female pirate narrowed her eyes at the thief then smirked as she punched his arm with equal force. In the midst of their teasing, Elizabeth was looking around the main deck of the Black Pearl in search of someone. When she couldn't find him anywhere outside, she figured that he was somewhere below the deck and began to pull Will along with her.

"Come on Will. I would like to have something to eat at the galley." The young blacksmith had no choice but to follow his wife as they made their way below deck. Marine and Jones stared at the two and tilted their heads to the side in confusion. Jones thought it strange that Elizabeth would want to eat when as a matter of fact she had already eaten lunch together with him and the rest of the crew. But he cast aside the thought when he caught sight of Teague who was inspecting the ropes out of boredom. Without warning he grabbed Marine's arm and began dragging her towards him. The female pirate widened her eyes and stumbled as she tried to follow after the thief. Tia couldn't do anything else but watch and chuckle softly as the thief lead Marine away.

"Jones!! What the hell are you doing? Where are you taking me?" She cried.

"You've been cooped up in that cabin for weeks, you had fallen into a coma and you had been acting like some brainless child throughout this time that I'm sure you've never heard of Teague's delicious, wonderful stories about Jack Sparrow in his youth!" Jones explained excitedly. "That's about to change though. Teague! Teague!" A smirk appeared on Marine's face as she watched the older man turn his gaze to them with a smile.

"And to what do I owe this pleasure of your presence?" He asked them. He gazed at Marine specifically and was glad that she looked a lot better. She was still slightly pale, but there was more color in her cheeks compared to the previous weeks he had seen her in Jack's cabin.

"Jones here told me that you have some interesting stories about a certain pirate captain of the Black Pearl. And I do remember you mentioning them when we first met." Marine said. "Care to divulge your interesting stories and entertain me for a few minutes at least?" Teague chuckled as he looked at the two.

"What about your promise to Jackie boy about not being near me?" He asked her. Marine rolled her eyes.

"If this is his reason for making me stay away from you then it's all the more reason for me not to follow him! I'll never pass this chance to hear his childhood days." She told him. "Though I think we should do this somewhere hidden, where he won't find us." She added with a thoughtful gaze. Jones grinned as he began to suggest places where they could talk without being seen too quickly. Teague just spent this time looking at the other two as they talked, teased and laughed. It was indeed difficult not to warm up to such a free-spirited woman such as Marine. Especially if she was just as bold and witty as the men were. His thoughts were cut short when a question was addressed to him. He had an apologetic smile on his face as he focused his attention to the two.

"Sorry, I wasn't paying attention. What was it you were asking me?"

"Well Jones and I thought of going up the crow's nest to have our little entertainment. Is that all right with you? If you want we can find an easier spot on the Pearl." Marine told him. Teague frowned and pretended to be very offended.

"I'll have you know that despite my age, I am just as fit and healthy as any other pirate on this ship. I'm probably stronger than some of them even!" He scoffed. "Who do you think taught Jack all of those skills and tricks that he uses in his fights? Why if he and I were locked in a battle I would no doubt win it within minutes!" Marine laughed at Teague who gave a cheeky grin in return.

"But there will come a time when the student would surpass the master isn't there?" She asked him with a teasing grin. Teague made a loud noise in his throat which resembled a snort and a grunt, causing Marine to laugh all over again.


	39. A Change in the Winds

**AN: **Sorry for the really long delay. Been really busy. Now what else...ah yes. Finally I've motivated myself enough to put up something a teeny tiny bit romantic. Though I think you guys will kill me after this. Don't think I've stopped updating though. I'm still typing and plotting, though it's pretty slow as of late. Don't forget to read and review and enjoy the latest chapter! XD

* * *

_**"The winds have suddenly changed. We must warn the others." - Tia Dalma**_

**Chapter 39 - A Change in the Winds**

The sound of a sudden roar was loud below the deck as Elizabeth and Will made their way to the stairs. It startled Elizabeth at first as she wondered what could possibly be happening down below to create such a ruckus. Will had an equally confused and startled expression on his face as he glanced at his wife. Together they made their way down to where the source of the noise was coming from. They soon saw that it was coming from the galley where a very large crowd had formed and circled around two men who were at the center of it all. To both the newcomer's surprise, it was Norrington and Jack who were at the center of attention. They were both sitting on chairs across each other, with an arm on the table and their hands clasped together. Elizabeth and Will made their way to Gibbs, who was standing not far from them and was watching the events unfold with an excited grin on his face.

"What on earth is going on here?" She asked. The first mate turned his gaze to the two and smiled as he gestured to the two men.

"The Captain's challenged Norrington to an arm wrestling match after the Commodore has won against three of the crew." The two were very surprised to hear Gibb's explanation. They had never thought that Norrington would agree to joining such competition and wondered how the pirates convin_**c**_ed him to participate.

"Norrington is arm wrestling? And he has won against three men?" Will asked incredulously. Gibbs nodded in reply.

"Well he used to be a Commodore. Even men in his role would need to be strong to do what they do." He said. They saw a point to what Gibbs said then turned their attentions to the other men who were passing money and calling out names of either Jack or Norrington. Of course the young couple wouldn't gamble their money away to watch the two fight, but they were just as curious as the rest of them in seeing who would win the arm wrestling match.

So far neither of them seemed to be winning, with their arms and hands barely moving an inch. It was a surprise to Elizabeth that the two weren't becoming unfocused from all the cheers and the shouts coming from the other men. Each man had a very intense and serious expression on his face as they both struggled to bring the other man's arm down on the table. The young blond haired woman feared that it was going to take a while longer so she decided to push through the crowd and stand close to where they were sitting down.

"Jack. I have great news to tell you."

"Not now love." Jack grumbled as he continued to stare at Norrington and their clasped hands. "As you can see, I'm quite busy."

"Yes, I can see that. But this is much more important than your brainless, manly activities. I came here to tell you that Tia's idea worked Jack." She told him. Jack gave a short nod to her.

"That's nice love." It was clear that he wasn't listening to a word she said because she knew if Jack heard any news about Marine, he would instantly be on it as quick as lightning. Just then a man came walking down the stairs from above, eager to join in his crew mates' activities. When Gibbs saw him though, he had a look of confusion and suspicion.

"What are you doing here? Weren't you assigned to be the lookout today?" He asked.

"Teague and the others told me that they would take care of it. Said they had some discussion to have in private. You wouldn't guess who was with him though!" He cried excitedly. Other men turned their attention to the man though Jack and Norrington were still in the heat of their competition to take too much notice on the pirate. "Jones was with him, as well as Marine! Can you believe it? She's recovered from her grief and was smiling before I came here. It looks like she's back to her normal self." Some of the men cheered while others smiled. They were all glad of the news the man gave them. Jack on the other hand, immediately looked up from his match with wide, disbelieving eyes. Apparently he had been listening to everything that was being said the moment Marine's name had been mentioned.

"What?!" Norrington took this opportunity to give his all into slamming Jack's hand down the table. The sound of a loud thud called everyone's attention back to the competing men and when they saw what had happened, a mixture of cheers and laughter erupted. There were some who grumbled and groaned, disappointed at losing the bet they placed on their captain. Jack was dumbfounded and speechless as he stared at his hand then at Norrington who had a triumphant smirk on his face.

"That wasn't fair! You cheated!" He accused.

"I did nothing of the sort. You lost focus, therefore you lost the match." Norrington answered back with his arms crossed over his chest. "And since when do pirates care about such things? You lot probably cheat a lot more than I ever will." Jack narrowed his eyes but then remembered the reason for his loss of concentration and stood up from his chair. But before he walked away he glanced at the former Commodore and pointed at him.

"The next time we play, I won't go so easy on you."

"We'll see about that Sparrow." Norrington replied. Jack continued to narrow his eyes at him but began to walk out of the galley past everyone else. He could hear two new competitors sitting down on the chairs and could hear the sounds of men placing their bets on whoever they thought would win the match. Once he was out on the main deck, the noise faded away and was replaced instead by the sound of laughter. Jack could hear a wonderful, familiar voice that tugged at his heart. It had been too long for him since he last heard her laughter. Then when he remembered that Marine was together with Teague, he realized the reason for her cheerful outburst and wasn't too pleased anymore. He looked around, wondering where the noise was coming from, when he heard Jones cry out.

"Oh lookie here! It's the man himself, come out to be further humiliated! How's it going Jack? We were just enjoying your dad's stories about your childhood. Marine seems to enjoy it very much, don't you Marine?" What he got in return was more laughter as Marine recalled the last of Teague's stories. The pirate captain looked up and saw Jones grinning down at him from the crow's nest. He said nothing but Jones could see from the look on Jack's face that they ought to get down before he gets really mad. Within minutes, the three were standing around a very unhappy Jack. The female pirate knew the reason to his disappointment as she smiled at him apologetically.

"I'm sorry I broke my agreement with you. If you're going to blame anyone, blame me. But hearing Teague share stories about you was just too big to pass up!" She said. "You're not angry, are you?" The frown on Jack's face disappeared and instead he gave a soft, resigned sigh.

"No, I'm not. I had a feeling that you were going to hear of it sooner or later so it doesn't matter now."

"If it makes you feel any better, I've experienced some of your experiences when I was a kid too." Jack gave her a small and grateful smile.

"Aye, that does a little bit...um...well...it's good to see you in better spirits." He began. "I guess Tia's idea worked then?"

"Yeah. She and Elizabeth told me what they did. She made some sort of potion that brought me into this death-like state. I got to meet my parents and they talked some sense into me."

"That's good to hear. Tia had mentioned that there was a possibility that her idea might not work. But you're a fighter Marine, and I would be surprised if you wouldn't put up a fight and give up just like that." Marine smiled, then the two fell into silence. That was when they realized that Jones and Teague were nowhere to be seen. Jack was looking around and was debating on whether to walk away or to stay. If he walked away, it would seem rude and it would give Marine the impression that he didn't want to be with her. But if he stayed, what could he possibly say or do? There was this strange awkward feeling that had come between them with the small talk they were having and Jack didn't like it one bit. With an inward, frustrated sigh he turned around and began walking away but continued to speak to Marine and half-expected her to follow.

"Well then, why don't we head down to the galley and get you reacquainted with everyone? The crew is having an arm wrestling match with each other and placing bets on it. I was playing against ol' Norry but the stupid bugger cheated. But forget about that, I've decided that we should hold a party for your recovery! We've got enough supplies and if we don't we can always go to some pirate-friendly port and resupply the ship." As he rambled on, a strong grip on his arm stopped him. He looked over his shoulder and saw Marine holding him with her mouth open. Then just as suddenly, she pressed her lips close and bit her lower lip as she had some internal debate within herself. After a few seconds she shook her head and the smile came back.

"Sorry. Forget it. Let's go have ourselves a grand party! With lots of rum!" She added. Jack grinned at that, pushing aside his curious thoughts on what Marine was supposed to say when she had stopped him.

"A wonderful idea love! We can't have a party without rum!" Together both Jack and Marine made their way below deck to tell them the good news. As they walked, Jack noted that Marine's hand was still holding onto his arm firmly, as if with the intent of never letting him go.

He didn't mind it one bit.

* * *

The Black Pearl and its crew found themselves docked on one of the less popular and smaller islands in the Caribbean a few days after their celebration for Marine's recovery. Jack had declared that before they continue on their chase after the clone, they should stock up on the large amount of food they consumed during the party and resupply themselves with weapons and gunpowder. Everyone agreed to Jack's decision and were off doing their respective duties. Almost all of the men were ashore while Marine, Elizabeth and Tia relaxed on the deck of the Black Pearl.

Marine took a deep breath then sighed as she stared out into the waters. It had been a while since she'd had some moment of peace and quiet. The last time she remembered having no one chasing after her or not having to fight with men who want to kill her or not needing to worry over a problem was back when she was stuck on the island together with Jack. To her it felt like her time with Jack on the uninhabited island had been years ago. She missed living a peaceful and carefree life. She looked down at her hands, more specifically at the bandages that were wrapped around her wrist and wondered when she would get that same peace and relaxation.

"What are you thinking about Marine?" The sound of Elizabeth's voice brought the female pirate out of her thoughts. She turned her gaze around and saw the young blond haired woman together with Tia Dalma looking at her curiously. She smiled at them as she shook her head.

"Nothing important. Just stuff." She replied. Elizabeth could sense that it was something more, but she didn't press on the subject any further and decided to bring up something else entirely.

"So, is there something between you and Jack? Have you two gotten into a fight or something?" She asked in a slightly concerned tone. The suddenness of the question threw Marine off as she blinked and stared at Elizabeth in surprise.

"What?"

"The two of you have been avoiding each other for some time and the last time I saw you speaking with him was during the party." She explained. Marine looked away as she bit her lip hesitantly. Elizabeth's words were true, but she didn't know if she should tell the other woman what was bothering her. Tia had a kind smile as she placed a firm hand on the female pirate's shoulder.

"This is about Jack and the compass am I right?" She asked. The defeated, slightly worried look on Marine face told her the answer. When Elizabeth saw this she frowned.

"I must admit that seeing you as the thing that Jack desires the most had me taken aback. I would have never thought he'd even consider having such feelings for a woman." Marine sighed as she shook her head at the young blond haired woman.

"That's just it. It's not like Jack to have such feelings. It's impossible for him to fall in love and commit to one woman for the rest of his life. He doesn't love - well not in the romantic, marriage type anyway - and knowing that I'm an object of his desire is just...awkward."

"But Jack loves you! It's so obvious that any fool could see it!" Elizabeth cried, causing Marine to grimace. "If you've seen him for the past few weeks the way we did, you'd know that he is very smitten with you. He worries about you, more than any of us would. And the compass proves that he loves you, doesn't it?"

"There is a very important point that you have missed out on. The compass only points you to the thing you desire most at the moment." Marine told her. "It doesn't necessarily mean that it would be the thing you desire most the next time you hold the compass." She looked out at the water, keeping her emotions from being seen. "It wouldn't be a surprise if, after Jack gets what he wants from me, he would get tired and simply go find some other interesting woman to chase after. It was never love that drove him to try with me. To him all this is just a game; it's the fact that I deny him that makes him attracted to me."

"I always push him away whenever he tries to flirt with me but you don't see Jack going through hell and back to save me." Elizabeth argued.

"You're married and even if you weren't Jack had always been interested with you; don't you dare deny it. And I'm sure Jack's flirted with Tia as well. And don't start with me on AnaMaria. Even though she threatens him and wants to beat him up now, there was a time when he's used his charms on her and she fell for it. Fortunately for her, a boat was the only price she had to pay. I might not be so lucky." Marine shook her head again. "No. Whatever it is he's feeling for me right now, it's only temporary. He'll get over it soon enough; just like he got over you, and Tia, and most likely every other woman he's been with since he's began his charming wiles."

"I have been wondering..." Tia said, causing the two woman to look at her. "You show no signs of being attracted to Jack Sparrow, yet I can see that there is turmoil lurking within you. How do you feel about the Captain?" She asked. Elizabeth turned her gaze to Marine as well.

"That's right. I've seen how Jack worries about you, but I haven't seen much from you that would say you have feelings for him. Do you love him?" Marine didn't reply as she looked down at the ground and avoided their gazes. The truth was she didn't know if she truly loved the pirate or not. If she did, would she be willing to risk it all just to see if she could get the pirate captain to love her back? Marine's lips thinned and she turned around, making her way towards the gangplank. "I'm going to go out for a walk. I'll be back so you won't have to worry about me." She told them. Elizabeth was about to open her mouth and protest when Tia held the other woman's shoulder firmly.

"Let her go. Walking alone will give her time to organize her thoughts and think about her feelings thoroughly."

"But what if something bad happens to her? No one will be there to help her." The young blond haired woman replied worriedly.

"This town is safe in the morning. It is only during the night when danger lurks about and threatens the life of one who is not careful. Marine will be all right so you need not worry." The other said. Elizabeth gave a soft, resigned sigh and nodded to the dark skinned woman. She had faith in the female pirate whether she was in her weakest state or not. All of a sudden Tia looked up at the sky and frowned. "The winds have suddenly changed. We must warn the others."

* * *

Due to the arriving of the storm, Jack had decided to stay in town until it passes. He had the news that they were going to have an extended break spread among his men and enjoyed himself in one of the taverns together with them even though it was still only around 7 in the evening. Will and Norrington were the ones who had given him the news and they were currently away to accompany the women in looking for a place to stay in. They had decided to take this opportunity to sleep in a warm and comfortable bed. Jack was considering this as well as he looked admiringly at all of the women who were looking at him and swaying their hips at him suggestively. Teague and Jones, who were together with him at the table, only watched and didn't dare raise the thought that crept up their minds. When Jones saw the doors to the tavern open and caught sight of a familiar looking female pirate entering, he raised both of his eyebrows in surprise then grinned brightly as he waved at her and called for her.

"Marine! Over here!" Marine saw them and smiled as she made her way towards their table. She nodded to the others in greeting before sitting down beside Jones.

"What's up?" She asked him.

"We're just enjoying ourselves here. What about you? Did you get tired of staying cooped up with Elizabeth and Tia? Oh yeah, where are you guys staying at? I think I'd enjoy sleeping on a bed too." Marine blinked at him and tilted her head in confusion.

"What are you talking about? They're at the Black Pearl aren't they?" It was Jones' turn to look at her in confusion as he threw back her question at her.

"What are you talking about? Weren't you with Elizabeth and Tia this whole time?" A shake of the head from Marine answered his question. "So where were you?"

"Around." Marine replied evasively.

"Doing what?"

"Thinking about stuff." She said then before Jones could ask further, she turned her gaze to a waitress and called for a mug of rum. When she turned her gaze back to Jones she asked him another question. "So what's going on? What's the whole crew doing here looking like they're having a vacation?"

"Tia said that there's a storm coming."

"Really? Didn't notice that..." Marine's brows furrowed as she frowned in thought. Even her sense of the seas and the weather had been taken away from her by her clone. To her relief the waitress came back with the rum she asked for and without saying anything else she grabbed the mug and took a large swig. Jones watched this for a few seconds before speaking.

"Are you sure you should be drinking like that?"

"The clone took my skills and talents. I sure hope as hell she didn't take my tolerance for alcoholic drinks."

"You don't know? What about the party on the Black Pearl? Didn't you get drunk during that time?"

"I didn't really celebrate much. Hardly drank anything that was alcoholic." Marine said as she placed back the mug on the table. "And even if she did take away my tolerance, like hell I'd stop drinking. I'm in the mood to get drunk and just drown myself in my sorrows." Jones didn't bother asking her what she meant by sorrows. Instead he looked at Teague with a pleading look, only to have it returned to him through a small smile and a shrug of the older man's shoulders. Next he turned his gaze to Jack, saw him eyeing a scantily clad woman and gave a heavy sigh. The female pirate caught Jones' action and felt her jaw stiffen. Jones wasn't surprised to see Marine grab the mug and take another large swig. What made it worse was when said woman went up to Jack and casually sat on his lap.

"What's a handsome fellow like you doing hanging around by your lonesome?"

"I've been waiting for a pretty lass such as yourself to come and whisk me away from my loneliness." Jack replied with a grin. "How would you like to be taken care of by the great Captain Jack Sparrow?" Jack could swore he heard someone snort but the woman's wandering hands were keeping his thoughts away from anything else.

"Ohhh that's a very interesting offer Captain. I would very much like to know just how good you are." The woman said this with a giggle as she kissed Jack's cheek. Jones turned his gaze to Marine who looked ready to kill anything that comes near her. He had half expected to see the mug Marine held break from her strong grip. With a trembling, hesitant hand, Jones tried to reach out to touch her shoulder gently.

"You know Jack really doesn't care about that woman. He's just...Jack. Marine?" He asked softly.

"I'm not mad. Why would I be mad? It's not like Jack and I have something going on with each other or something. I'm sure he's ready to go and have fun since he's spent all this time without a woman to sleep with. I'd feel very guilty if I deprived him of his past time. He can go get laid with a pig for all I care." Marine suddenly laughed, amused at some joke that only she understood. Jones winced at that final comment and quickly pulled back his hand before it came into contact with the female pirate. He saw that the other woman face was becoming red and her movements were becoming sluggish.

"...maybe you should stop drinking Marine." He suggested hesitantly.

"Why should I? I love drinking!" She cried. "Another round over here please!" She shouted at a passing waitress while waving her empty mug in the air. Jones groaned and slapped his face with his hand as he shook his head from side to side.

"Jones..." Upon hearing his name spoken in a soft and sober tone the thief glanced at Marine and saw her looking at the table with a grim expression on her face. "Jones I've realized something."

"What is it?" He asked, wondering if Marine wasn't drunk and was just reacting in a bad way to Jack and the woman he was with. All hope of that was dashed as he saw Marine grin at him maniacally.

"You're a man! How come I'm not a man? It's not fair!!" All of a sudden Marine began crying with her face pressed against her arms which lay crossed on the table. "I want to be a man! I hate being a woman! Do you know how hard it is to be a woman? Do you? Huh?" She looked up at him with such wild, glazed eyes that Jones unconsciously leaned away from her.

"Uh..."

"Now if I was a guy, I bet I'd be really hot. And I bet I'd have all the women crawling to me like bees to honey. Don't you think so? Hey, maybe I am a guy! A guy trapped in a woman's body, yeah that's right." She grabbed the sword which was strapped to a belt around her waist with one hand and pulled her hair straight with the other. "Maybe if I cut my hair off I'll turn into a guy!" Jones widened his eyes and lunged at Marine, pulling away the weapon from her hands. As second measure he took away her guns as well.

"Marine are you crazy?! You could get hurt with that!"

"Who cares? All the smurfs have died!" Marine wailed as she crashed onto the chair she was sitting on. Her arms were crossed on the table and her head was pressed against her arm as she began crying aloud. "I'll never be chosen as the Tooth Fairy!" She suddenly stopped crying as she looked at something that only she could see. Jones was watching her warily, wondering what Marine was capable of when drunk and what he should do to stop her from going too far. The female pirate stood up from her chair and walked up to a man who was ordering a drink by the bar.

"Hey, do you know what I am?" She asked. The man glanced at her with one eyebrow raised but had a small, slightly amused smile on his face when he saw that she was dead drunk.

"One very beautiful and appealing lass I'd say." He replied. Marine narrowed her eyes at him as she lifted one finger at him.

"Virgin. Don't forget that I'm still a virgin." She forced herself to stand up on the stool, though it took her a long while before she even managed to get up on her knees. When she did get up she held her arms out to either side and laughed. "I'm better than any of these whores you're with because I'm still fresh, baby! Now who in this tavern wouldn't want to have the first taste of a young and sexy woman?" A couple of men cheered and made catcalls at her as she teased them with a swing of her hips. Jones was having a hard time trying to control Marine and getting her to come down amidst the confusion and the rowdiness of it all.

"Marine! Get down from there! Oh god you are going to kill me when you wake up tomorrow..." He groaned. A hand on his shoulder made him stop. He turned to the side and saw Teague with a small, amused smile on his face.

"I think we all had enough fun for one night. I'll help you bring her to Elizabeth and the others." Jones gave a sigh of relief as he nodded in agreement. Before either man could move though, the stool Marine stood on began to wobble greatly. The female pirate didn't seem to realize that she was going to get hurt as she continued to laugh and move around. The stool toppled over and Marine began to fall. She would have gotten a very bad bruise on her head if two hands hadn't shot out and caught her. Marine, still oblivious to what happened to her, looked up and grinned at the frowning man looking down at her.

"Hey Jackie boy! Are you here to take away my virginity like the rest of them? We're devils and black sheep and really bad eggs, drink up me 'earties yo ho!" Jones and Teague went up to Jack as the pirate captain shifted Marine around so that he could carry her more comfortably.

"Jack! Thank goodness you caught her. Your dad and I have had enough so we're going to bring her to Elizabeth and Tia now." The thief said as he was about to reach out to Marine. Jack tightened his hold on the woman in his arms as he shook his head to the other's surprise.

"That's all right. I'll be taking her myself. You and dad go on and enjoy the night some more." He told them. "I appreciate you taking care of her while she's in her current...state."

"Jack..." Teague spoke in a warning voice. Jack ignored him as he turned around and began leaving, all the while Marine sung the infamous pirate song she learned through Jack and the movie. At the same time that they walked out of the tavern, lightning flashed in the dark sky followed by the sound of thunder. Raindrops began falling onto the ground in small droplets and it slowly became a sheet of rain the farther Jack walked. When the rain began falling the pirate captain, with Marine in his arms, began to run as quickly as he could to the inn he knew. Jones and Teague watched Jack leave the tavern together with an intoxicated Marine before looking at each other; Jones with an unsure expression and Teague with no expression at all.

"Do you think it was such a good idea to leave those two together?" Jones asked worriedly. Teague shook his head slowly as he gazed back at the door.

"I don't know."

**********

Jack entered into one of the more respectable inns while carrying Marine bridal-style. Both were soaking wet from the rain outside and covered the floor in large puddles of water because of it. The female pirate was still singing as loud as the pelting rain outside and was singing it out of tune, causing a few heads to turn at their direction with strange expressions on their faces. The innkeeper watched them make their way towards him with amusement before smiling at them.

"Welcome to the inn. Would you like to have one of our finer rooms?" He asked. Jack nodded as he struggled with a squirming Marine.

"Yes, we'll have one of your best. I'll have to pay you tomorrow. My hands are kind of full at the moment." He said. The innkeeper chuckled and nodded as he handed Jack the keys to one of the rooms of the inn.

"I understand. Your room number is engraved on the key. I hope you and your bony lass enjoy your stay at the inn." He told them with a knowing smile and a wink. Jack grimaced and said nothing as he managed to take the key from the other man then made his way to where the stairs were, leaving a trail of water behind. He went up slowly with Marine still in his arms, making sure that he didn't miss a step or else they would both fall down the stairs. His boots squelched noisily but somehow he managed to keep himself from slipping. The female pirate had fallen silent as she was being carried. It was only when the pirate captain felt a hand on his cheek that he looked down at her. He saw how her eyes were glazed and her face was flushed from intoxication. His skin could feel tingling sparks as her hands touched his face and when he looked into her eyes he froze in his spot for a moment.

"Hey Jack...are we...going to do it?" She asked him softly.

"What are you talking about love?" Jack asked her as he went back to climbing up the stairs and gratefully reached the last step. Marine giggled as she pinched his cheeks playfully, causing the former to wince in slight pain.

"You know what I'm talking about you silly man! Why else would you carry me into a room?" She wrapped her arms around his neck and pressed her lips to his firmly. The pirate captain had anticipated the other's move but he wasn't able to stop and had to stand still while they kissed. When Marine pulled away from the lack of oxygen, she smiled up at him and giggled. "Are you still going to pretend that you don't know what I'm talking about?" Jack went back to walking, not saying anything to her at first as he concentrated on looking for their room. He could hardly see the number on the doors in the darkness. Lightning flashed and Jack got to see the number on two rooms. Then he began to count as he made his way to the room number that was on the key in his hand. After walking for a few more minutes he stopped at the front door to their designated room and gazed down at Marine.

"Love, you're not in the right state of mind at the moment. I know that you'll thank me for this when you wake up in the morning." He said when they had reached the door. Gently, he put her down on the floor, forcing her to stand up while he unlocked the door and turned the knob open. Marine pouted as she pressed herself against Jack's back and trailed her fingers up and down his chest. The fact that their shirts were plastered to their skin from the rain only made the sensation more intense.

"Aww come on Jackie boy, you know you want to." She whispered in his ear in a very soft and seductive tone. Jack swallowed the lump in his throat and struggled not to pay any attention to the female pirate as he pushed open the door and entered the room, bringing Marine along with him. It was even darker inside than it was outside and Jack made to turn on the lamp that hang to the side of the door before going further in. He halted in his movements when the hands around him disappeared and turned around to find Marine standing behind him with her arms crossed over her chest and a childish frown on her face. Shadows flickered in the wall as they stood a meter from each other, neither one moving. He smiled at her as he gestured to the bed in the room while his eyes never left her body, her soaked shirt practically melding with her skin. He might not plan on doing anything to her, but it wasn't in his nature to turn away from an opportunity to admire a woman's body.

"Come on love, it's time for you to go to bed."

"I'll go to bed only if you sleep with me." She told him. Then she grinned as she brought her hands up to the buttons on her shirt. "Or maybe you prefer to do it right here on the ground?" Jack immediately closed the distance between them and grabbed her hands before she could start undressing herself. Marine looked up at him and narrowed her eyes when she saw him looking at her with a grim expression on his face. "What? You don't want to sleep with me? Why? Isn't this what you desire the most?"

"Admittedly, hearing you speak in a very sexy tone and undressing yourself in front of me is very, very appealing." He told her. He could feel his mind running rapidly through several fantasies that he had pictured in his head and he shook these away with a shake of his head. "But I'm not about to destroy your trust by taking advantage of you. You're drunk and you're not in the right mind right now."

"I am too." She argued. "Even though I'm drunk, I'm perfectly aware of what I'm doing. You know why I'm doing this? It's because I'm tired of waiting and wondering. I'm tired of always worrying about the what if's concerning you. I don't know if you really love me or if you just want me because you're attracted to me or attracted to the way I always tried to reject you and I hate it when you take notice of other women, just like what you did earlier at the tavern. But somehow I know that in the end we're never going to work out. You're not ready to commit and I'm just too stubborn to agree to being just another one of your women. So I've decided that I at least should try being with you once. I know that as soon as you've had me you'll get tired of me and move on but I don't care anymore. I just want these stupid feelings inside me to stop pestering me. So let's just get this over with so I can move on with my life!"

Jack stared at her incredulously as she gave her speech. He was struck speechless by her words and felt something unexplainable stir inside of him. Marine didn't give him the chance to answer or speak as she stepped closer to him and placed both of her cold hands to either side of his equally cold cheek. Then she pulled his face to hers and kissed him passionately, with the pirate captain not responding. A few seconds passed before Jack held her shoulders and gently pushed her away from him. As much as he wanted them to go further, he wanted to slow things down and think on matters more. He needed to take another look at his own feelings and decide on his next move carefully or else everything would explode on him and he would have ruined the second chance he had to be on good terms with Marine. But when she looked up at him with tear-filled eyes, he widened his eyes and froze. Though her wet face concealed it, he was sure that Marine was crying before him. All previous thoughts that he had in his head disappeared when he looked at her.

"I love you Jack. Even though I don't want to, I do. And it's killing me how I would always hope that you would return those feelings back so that we would at least have something together. Tell me the truth, so that I can set myself free from this frustration. To me it doesn't matter anymore if you love me or not. I just want to know." She blinked as Jack raised a finger to wipe the tears away from her eyes. He was looking at her with a warm gaze and when his fingers trailed down to her chin he pushed it upwards so that she was looking right at him. They were both oblivious to the lightning that suddenly crashed down and gave a loud cracking sound or to the sound of the rain as it pelted harder against the rooftops and the windows.

"I'm sorry Marine." He whispered. After he said this he leaned his head down to hers and pressed her lips to his gently.


	40. Height of the Storm

**AN: **Hey guys! I'm really really really sorry for the long delay. I've been really busy with my OJT this summer that I couldn't get the time to write. And what was worse than that was, I had a slight case of writer's block and wasn't sure on what to do next. Don't worry, it's all taken care of and hopefully you guys won't be disappointed. Unfortunately, I'll still be busy for the remainder of the month so I'm not sure when the next chapter will come out. I thank those who are still reading this and hope that you guys patiently wait. We're pretty close to the end now, and I hope you still enjoy what's left of it.

* * *

_**"What brings you to the Black Pearl and under this blasted weather?" - Carter**_

**Chapter 40 - Height of the Storm**

The sound of the rain pelting against the rooftops sounded like gongs ringing continuously in Marine's ears. They pounded in sync with the headache that the female pirate had as she slowly and hesitantly came out of her unconsciousness. She automatically pulled the blankets over her and placed the pillow right on top of her head before curling up into a fetus position. Everything sounded louder than usual; even the sound of the door being pushed open and footsteps walking into the room made her head pound and her ears twitch. She felt the presence of someone standing beside the bed then heard a low, deep and annoyingly loud chuckle.

"Good morning love. How are you feeling?" The bright, cheery voice asked her.

"Like crap." Marine muttered from under the covers. Her throat burned as she spoke and she would probably do anything for a glass of water right about then. The other person grabbed the edge of the blanket and began to tug gently, but Marine tightened her grip on it and pulled it from the other's grasp.

"Come on love, it's time for you to wake up." The other spoke. Marine ignored him and did her best to go back to sleep while fighting off the headache that tortured her. "Tia told me to give this herbal mixture she made to you. It'll take care of your hangover." He added. The female pirate still would not relent and curled up even more. Finally she heard the other person give a sigh of frustration. "Don't make me have to use force lass." Marine stretched out as she turned around slowly, doing her best to ignore the throbbing headache in her mind, and peeked out from under the covers.

"You won't do that to a sick lady would you?" Teague was holding a mug in one hand and had the other hand on his waist while his face had donned a frown of disapproval. When she spoke, the frown slowly transformed into a small smile as he sat down on the left side of the bed and held out the drink.

"No I won't. But I will make you drink this one way or another." He said. "You might as well save us both the trouble and just drink it." Marine pouted at him but she struggled to sit up on the bed and when she was sure she could sit up without support, took the mug from his hands. A strange smell rose from the mug that made the female pirate wrinkle her nose. She glanced hesitantly at the older pirate who nodded and motioned her to drink it. Taking a deep breath and holding it in, she quickly drank the drink before coughing and gagging. She wordlessly stretched out her arm at Teague who took the mug and smiled at her in amusement, watching as she stuck her tongue out and tried her best not to take too much notice of the taste - and was failing. Despite this she could feel her head grow lighter and her headache fade until it was nothing but a tiny nuisance.

"Though it tasted like I just drank some urine, I feel a lot better. Thank you for bringing it to me, and thank Tia for making it for me." She told him. Teague nodded at her.

"She'll be pleased to know that it helped. You had a wild night so it's no surprise that you're feeling awful this morning." Marine grimaced as she massaged the side of her head. Just thinking of it made her head hurt.

"Just what exactly did I do last night? All I could remember was drinking alcohol and then talking with Jones for a bit. I didn't do anything stupid or embarrassing did I?"

"Well..." Teague began. Marine could already tell by the tone of the older man's voice that she did and she groaned as she covered her face with her hands. "Let's just say that you caught a lot of attention from the tavern patrons that night. Fortunately you did nothing to completely destroy your pride. But you were acting very intimate with Jack as he carried you out of the tavern." At the last part of his explanation Marine widened her eyes and snapped her gaze at him.

"What?! Are you serious? Where is he?" She looked around the room and half-expected Jack to suddenly pop out from nowhere. Teague couldn't help but chuckle at her expression.

"Jackie boy is downstairs together with the others. And no lass, he didn't do anything with you last night if that's what you're wondering." He said while Marine was looking down at her almost-naked self. She was wearing only her underwear and the bandage wrapped around her chest. The only thing covering her was the blanket, which she quickly pulled up over herself as she turned a dark shade of red. If Teague hadn't mentioned it, she wouldn't have noticed that she wasn't wearing any clothes on. "Your clothes are drying over there." He added as he gestured to the chair against the wall to Marine's right side. "They were wet from the rain last night so Jack took them off you before you could catch a cold." The female pirate looked down in silence and gripped the blanket she held tighter.

"Can I ask you a question lass?" Marine looked at the older pirate in surprise before nodding.

"Sure...what is it?"

"What are your feelings towards my son? Do you love him?" He asked. If possible Marine's face grew an even darker shade of red. She looked away from him as she spoke, trying to hide the blush on her face.

"I'm not sure...and it doesn't really matter." She said with a dismissive wave of her hand. "It's not like it changes anything. Jack and I can never get together."

"Oh? And why not?"

"Well, he's a pirate of course. And pirates don't really like being committed to something, especially if it's women. In Jack's case, he's specially particular about women. I don't think he'll want to be stuck with me for the rest of his life when there's bound to be other younger, prettier girls appearing in ports for every year that passes by. And I'm not planning on allowing myself to become just one of the women in his long list."

"Is that really what you think of us pirates?" Teague asked in a slightly teasing tone. "We're human as well lass, we're not some cold and ruthless bastards...well most of us are, but what I'm trying to say is we can make mistakes and we also have the same emotions that the rest of the human race does. If we don't know how to love, do you think Jackie boy would exist here as he is now? And what about that Turner lad? His father was a pirate as well wasn't he?"

"Y-y-yeah...but...you mean you and Jack's mother..."

"Well I wouldn't say we had the ideal marriage life, but as a Keeper of the Codes and a former Pirate Lord, me and me bony lass were quite happy with each other." He smiled as he patted something on his side, something that Marine couldn't see. "Some pirates like myself and William Turner choose to continue our way of living after becoming committed to a woman, but there are those who have chosen to throw away a life of piracy in return for a peaceful and risk-free life in a family. You never know, men are unpredictable that way."

"Are you implying that Jack might choose to throw away piracy for the sake of a woman?"

"Not implying. Just stating a possibility. He has been known to surprise everyone in the past." After a moment of silence he sighed. "Lass, I'm not here to give you hope or to tell you that whatever you feel for my son, he will return in equal magnitude. I have just told you what I have seen and perceived with my own eyes. Whether you would believe in what I say or not is entirely up to you." Marine's eyes were trained on the bed sheet that covered her the whole time Teague spoke. And when he fell silent she looked up at him with narrow eyes.

"Then why did you ask if I liked him or not? Why bother telling me all this?"

"Well it's because your relationship with him has been quite...interesting." Teague began. "This is the first time I have seen him treating a woman in this manner."

"What are you talking about?"

"As you already mentioned, Jack is a man whose interest in women is...more intimate than others. So when, instead of being the selfish pirate that he is and taking advantage of your current state, he denies your offer, well it has me wondering just what kind of relationship the two of you share. Sometimes I can't help but wonder if I'll get the chance to experience being a grandfather or not." The female pirate furrowed her brows in confusion.

"State? Offer? What are you talking about?" She asked him.

"Well then, time waits for no one. Everyone's downstairs eating breakfast and waiting for you. You ought to get dressed and have something to eat too. It'll help ease your hangover. I'll leave you so you can get dressed in peace." He gave a short bow to her then briskly walked out of the room and quickly closed the door behind him before Marine could say anything else. The female pirate could only stay seated where she was, wondering just what exactly Teague meant by his words.

* * *

"Ah! Sleeping beauty finally wakes up!" Jones cried as Marine made her way towards their table at the corner of the room. Everyone was there, seated around a long table with empty mugs and plates. Will stood up from his seat and offered it to Marine who gave a small, grateful smile as she sat down. "Geez, you were so much trouble that I didn't feel like I had fun last night. If I wasn't there keeping an eye on you the whole time you probably wouldn't be here right now."

"Sorry Jones. I'll make it up to you someday." She told him with an apologetic smile. The thief grinned as he winked at her.

"You better!"

"Would you like to have something for breakfast?" Elizabeth asked her.

"Yeah, sure. Anything's fine." She replied. While the blond haired woman left the table to get something for Marine, the others continued their discussion from where they paused when Marine arrived.

"As I was saying," Jack began. He was seated at the head of the table, leaning against the chair at an angle and placing his boots on top of the table. "The Black Pearl's been restocked and all damages have been repaired since yesterday. All we have to do now is wait for the storm to pass so we can get back to tracking down Marine's clone."

"How long do you think the storm's going to last?" Jones asked. As if on cue, lightning flashed and the sound of thunder rumbled throughout the room.

"I'd say a few more hours. We'll be able to set sail by noon." Jack answered. "It won't be long now. You might as well enjoy your time on land while you still can."

"Here you go Marine." The female pirate glanced to the side as Elizabeth offered her a warm plate filled with eggs, some beef jerky and sausages. Along with that was a mug of water and a spoon and fork. "You should eat it while it's still hot." She added. Marine smiled at the young blond haired woman as she took the things the other held. She picked the eggs first and began to chew, feeling the warmth and strength flood into her. As she stared eating, Norrington, who was silently brooding in his chair this whole time, suddenly glanced at Jack.

"I'm worried about all this. We've given the clone too much time to recover and retaliate from the recent attack. There's a very high chance that she's figured out a way to attack us or to win should we decide to attack. If we had pursued her more fiercely before, we would have caught up to her by now instead of sitting in this tavern, waiting."

"There's nothing we can do about it. Certain...situations have arose during that span of time if you can recall." Jack said, giving a quick glance at Marine's direction before looking back at Norrington. "The best we can do now is predict what she's planning and do our best to counter it. I'm sure that wouldn't be a problem since we have someone who thinks like her." All eyes swerved towards Marine who was in the middle of putting a piece of sausage into her mouth. She froze, with her mouth open wide and the fork halfway there as she sensed all eyes on her. Her lips slid down into a frown as she put the fork back on top of the plate.

"Your guesses are as good as mine. I don't know what she would have done after our previous encounter."

"Well what would you have done if you were in her shoes?" Will asked.

"Since you took out all of my men, leaving me with only the sea snake as an ally, I would set off to find more allies. And a larger, better ship."

"Where would she get those?" Elizabeth wondered.

"It could be anywhere." Marine answered. "Sharpshooter Marine is quite a big name in the pirate world, especially after the things my clone has done. But I'm pretty sure that she'd use the extra hands to keep the whole crew busy. Her first priority would obviously be me and merging with me as soon as possible. She'll probably try to isolate me from the rest of the group since every time she's tried it, there was always someone there to stop her and keep me from completely merging with her."

"Then we'll have to make sure that you're always protected." Will replied.

"Aye, I'll leave that to you love." Jack said as he turned his gaze to Elizabeth. The young blond haired woman nodded at Jack. "You and Marine will stay in my cabin and keep yourselves out of trouble. As for the others...well obviously Teague, Tia and Cornelius won't be fighting as much. Perhaps you would be better off with Marine as well." He said as he turned his gaze to the group. It was his father who spoke first, and who had an insulted look on his face.

"What do you take me for lad? I might be a bit rough on the edges but I can still handle a few fights here and there!" The younger pirate sighed and rolled his eyes.

"Fine, whatever ye say dad. Just don't leave a bloody mess on the floor when the pirates pluck your guts out. You know how hard it is to wash out the blood."

"Oh I don't know, I haven't tried that yet. But I bet you have. You seem to know the feeling of scrubbing the deck very well." He answered back with a smile. Jack narrowed his eyes at him but said nothing else as Tia suddenly spoke, pulling his attention away from his father.

"I would prefer to be with Marine as well. I will be of much better use then than if you had me fighting alongside the crew. Though I might not have the skills to fight, I know enough to defend myself." She said. Marine looked from one person to the other as each one spoke his or her opinion then frowned as she crossed her arms over her chest.

"Hey, I'm still here you know! And I do have a right to make my own decisions. Why should I stay in the sidelines while you guys get to do all the dirty work?" She said. "I can still fight. You guys saw how I did back at Tia's shack. It's enough to keep me alive and going."

"But Marine, think about it! Your clone is most likely planning on getting to you as soon as possible. She's not going to take her time and wait for someone to come to your rescue anymore. And you're no match against her strength now. You'll just give her an opportunity to get at you quicker and easier." Jones told her.

"Then let her come at me! I'll get back every piece of me from her that way!" She answered back in slight anger.

"You're being too irrational." Norrington told her. "Why don't you just stay back this one time and let us do the work? Lord knows it'll make the burden lighter on all of us. You'll only pull us down; making us worry over you while we're risking our lives fighting other pirates. You know that you're not strong enough to fight them all yet you persist in doing exactly that. We'll just end up trying to save you again and again. And if someone dies during that time then it'll be your fault Marine." Elizabeth glared at Norrington while the whole group fell silent as they stared at the former Commodore in shock.

"Norrington!"

"Well I can't just stand here and do nothing!" Marine shouted angrily as she got up from her chair and slammed her fist on the table, causing the whole room to grow quiet. Everyone was staring at the female pirate as she narrowed her eyes at Norrington. "No one's forcing you to stay here and fight with us. Do you think I would agree to fighting if I knew I wouldn't be of help? I'm not that stupid! But if you're so worried about getting killed in the battle then why don't you just leave the crew and get lost!" Without waiting for Norrington to reply, she turned around and stomped out of the tavern, ignoring the cries of the others. They watched her walk out of the room, the sound of thunder booming across the skies drowning out the sound of the door as she slammed it close.

**********

Marine ignored the rain that was beginning to drench her from top to bottom as she stomped through the empty silent road, at no particular direction. She was too busy fuming and thinking about the words that Norrington spoke to care about where she was going and what she was doing. It was better to vent her anger this way than to stay in the tavern and receive more spiteful, offensive words from the others. She couldn't believe that everyone had agreed to simply push her aside from the fight, as if she wasn't involved in it. Elizabeth and Tia might be all right with being the frightened, worried women who wait on the men while they do the tough jobs but she'd rather die than fall under that category. Even Teague was allowed to fight, and he might even be weaker than she was. Thinking of it made Marine want to attack somebody but she couldn't find anything to vent on.

There was no sound save for the heavy fall of rain that reached her ears and she could hardly see the path she was walking on. The rain drops that fell on her felt like tiny needles pricking her skin, and somehow helped to cool her head a little. And because of her slowly fading fury, she began to see the sense in the former Commodore's words. He was right in saying that she was being foolish and that her stubborn pride would only cause trouble for the rest. Somehow she knew that truth but refused to admit to it. Her walk slowed down until she was standing in the middle of nowhere feeling completely useless and stupid. She looked down at the ground in shame, letting her hair stick all over her face.

"I'm such an idiot..." To her surprise the rain suddenly stopped. She looked up and saw a dark umbrella being held over her then glanced over her shoulder to find someone holding it for her.

"Aye that you are love." Jack told her with that trademark grin of his. "You forgot to bring an umbrella with you."

"Jack? How did you..."

"I know a thing or two about women with a temper and if there's one thing they all do, it's to walk in a straight path." The pirate captain explained. "Unless of course they're about to hit a dead end. Then they usually go to their left." He turned his gaze to the black haired pirate and smiled. "Well, since we're already on our way there we might as well visit the Pearl and stay there until the rain stops. Come on love." He placed a hand on her back and began to lead her down the road with the umbrella protecting both of them from the rain. Marine didn't argue or resist Jack and silently walked alongside him. She was still embarrassed about her sudden outburst back at the tavern and didn't feel like talking about it at that moment.

But that didn't stop her from thinking about everything that's happened and what she should do next. She knew she wouldn't be of any help during the fight because of her state, but at the same time she didn't want anyone else to take the burden away from her. The feeling of uselessness was something she wasn't too keen on. And recent events strengthened that resolve that she would never let anyone else fight her battles or do things for her at the cost of their own lives.

They arrived at the Black Pearl in no time at all, and the rain was beginning to lighten up into a drizzle. Marine moved from under the umbrella and walked up the gangplank to the main deck with Jack following her from behind after he closed the umbrella and shook off the excess water from it. It seemed Jack had given Carter the role of keeping an eye on the ship as Marine saw him waving at her brightly from the other side of the ship. Once she and Jack were at the edge of the deck the latter tapped the tip of the umbrella on the wooden floor and, taking off his hat, bowed before her while swinging his arm towards his cabin with a flair.

"After you madam." A small smile grazed her face as she gave a short bow in thanks and went ahead of him. She entered the cabin and looked around as Jack closed the door and set the umbrella to the side leaning against the wall.

"It's been a while since I've been to your cabin for other reasons aside being sick or injured." She said as she turned around to face Jack. "Looks like it hasn't changed one bit."

"We've been pretty busy so I couldn't get the time to redecorate." Jack said as he made his way to one of the cabinets and took out a bottle of rum for himself. That was when he remembered the other person in the room and glanced at her as he held it out to her. "Do you want some love?" Marine grimaced as she shook her head.

"No thanks...I don't think I'll be taking in any sort of alcohol for a while..." The two remembered what happened last night and fell silent. Marine was the first one to break the silence as she looked at Jack nervously. "Um...I want to know...just what exactly did I do last night? I mean...we didn't...right?"

"I prefer my women willing and sober." Jack said with a grin. "I swear to you and to anyone else who would ask that I have never taken advantage of a woman in bed."

"Yeah right..." Marine mumbled under her breath.

"What was that love?"

"Huh? Oh it's nothing. Was just talking to myself." Marine fell silent once more as she pondered on how to say what she wanted to say at that moment. She knew that Jack and the others would never agree to her suggestion but she would rather have that than nothing. Her mouth opened, but no words would come out. She didn't know the right words that would make things go smoothly. During this period of silence the pirate captain had been observing her then he raised an eyebrow as he watched her come up with something to say.

"Is there something wrong?" He asked.

"I...I..." Marine looked down to avoid his gaze. Having his eyes on her made it feel worse and made her lose the courage to say what she wanted to say. "I have a...can you...I want you to...I'm not sure how to say this..."

"Why don't you stop trying to find the right words and just say it? I'm sure I'll understand whatever it is you want to say." He told her encouragingly. Marine looked at him, bit the bottom of her lip, then sighed.

"Jack, I want you and the others to back off from this fight." Jack widened his eyes in surprise.

"What?"

"I want everyone to stay out of this. If it's only me and my clone, then things will be a lot simpler."

"Are you sure you're alright love? That hangover must be worse than I thought..." Jack mumbled as he moved towards his cabinets again. "Wait there, I think I have something to ease that hangover of yours."

"I'm not sick and I didn't decide on this because of my hangover." She said firmly. "I'm serious Jack. I want you all out."

"Are you mad?!" The other cried as he quickly swiveled around on his feet to face her. "What good will pushing away all of your allies do? You'll only be outnumbered and your clone will only get an even better advantage."

"I won't be outnumbered because I'm sure that my clone won't use her 'allies' if she sees that it's only me who's going to fight. The only reason she's getting more people on her side is because she knows that you and the others are there to support me and help me. When she knows that you aren't, she'll call off her own men and fight me alone. She wants to become complete fair and square." Jack narrowed his eyes at her.

"Are you completely certain about that? How sure are you that this clone of yours will do exactly that?" At first Marine was hesitant to answer, then her resolve grew stronger as she looked at Jack confidently.

"Because she's a part of me, as much as I don't want to admit it. And evil or not, she'll never cheat. Not in that manner. Not when she knows she already has an advantage." Jack raised his arms in the air and rolled his eyes.

"Then why give her an even greater advantage?!" He cried as he raised his voice at her in frustration. "Why trouble yourself to fighting alone when you know that there are people who want to help?"

"Because I don't want any of you to die!" She screamed back, causing Jack to fall silent. Unwanted tears began to form in her eyes and she rubbed them off furiously with the back of her arm. She tried hard to be angry, but recalling her best friend's death pained her and made her want to cry harder. "I don't want to be the cause of another death of a friend! I had to stand and watch a loved one die. I don't want to have to go through that again because I don't think I can recover from any more deaths." She whimpered. "So please Jack, just this once back off and leave me alone. You can easily do that right? I mean, it's not like you'll benefit from this whole ordeal. You'll get nothing from it."

"Won't I?" Jack mused softly, causing Marine to freeze in her spot. He looked at her with a strange emotion that Marine has never seen on his face before. The gaze he held made her feel shivers down her spine. Taking a step forward, he raised a hand to her cheek and wiped the tear away with his thumb. "You don't know that." He whispered. Before she could open her mouth and reply, he went on. "I return to you, the same question you asked me a few days ago; if you were in my place, what would you do? How would you feel if the person you loved the most tells you to back off and wait while they go fighting against someone who's far stronger than they are? Would you simply let them go and hope that they don't die?" Marine frowned at him and was about to reply to him when his exact words repeated in her head. She widened her eyes, opening and closing her mouth like a fish's, and everything that they were arguing about disappeared in her mind. Her heart pounded harder and her body started to tremble as she looked at Jack in dumbfounded confusion.

"W-w-what did you just say?"

"Captain! CAPTAIN!" The sound of a frantic cry coming from outside broke their focus on each other. They both turned their gazes to the door, with Jack quickly pulling his hand away from Marine and taking a step back from her at a safe distance. When Carter opened the door to Jack's cabin and barged into the room, he only saw the two standing face-to-face, seemingly in a casual conversation.

"What is it Carter?" Jack asked him.

"Cornelius...he..." The young man began as he looked at the black haired pirate with wide, panicked eyes. "He brought the prisoner out from his cell below deck!"

**********

That morning Cornelius shrank away from the rowdy crowd at the tavern - from the patrons who were having their breakfast and were getting ready for the day as well as his own friends and allies - and walked under the rain as he made his way to the docks. That night he could hardly sleep as Marine's treatment of Carrie's clone as well as her sudden death kept haunting his thoughts. He couldn't stop wondering about his own actions, and if the way he treated the clones were fair or not. Forgiveness had been in his mind ever since that day, but after what Maurice has done to Carrie's clone...

He shook his head, even more confused than ever. He didn't know how to treat Maurice now after the unforgivable thing he's done to Marine's best friend. Maurice had been one of his colleagues, a good friend of his for so long that he didn't want to stay mad at him forever. Just like Marine with Carrie, he wanted to forgive the other man, and he wanted for the two of them to be in good terms like the two women had been. There must be at least some form of the old Maurice in the clone...something that wasn't all evil that he could talk to and persuade. He ignored the rain as he walked, and went up the gangplank without any trouble. Carter was sitting down on a chair with an umbrella under him by the railing the whole time. When he saw that it was Cornelius he smiled at him and nodded in greeting.

"What brings you to the Black Pearl and under this blasted weather?" He asked in a loud voice. He had to if he wanted to be heard in the strong rain.

"I'm going to take a look at the prisoner, if that's all right with you." Cornelius replied in an equally loud voice.

"Of course it's all right. I wasn't told that visitors for the prisoner weren't allowed...though I don't know why someone like you would want to talk to him. Well if you're still going, then you should be careful. That guy might have some trick up his sleeve."

"I'll keep that in mind, thank you." After nodding at the younger man he walked past Carter and made his way below deck through the stairs. Drops of rain were dripping down his face from the tips of his hair but he paid no attention to it as he stared intently at the path ahead of him. He was lost in his own thoughts as his legs led him through the dark halls towards the prison cells. Despite the day, the hallway was dark with only the dim light from a lantern hanging against the wall at intervals lighting the way. The rain was still as strong as ever, seeping in from small cracks on the walls and made the place moist though it wasn't as loud as it was outside. He finally stopped at the first cell, simply standing there with hesitance as a small puddle of water began to form below his feet. A dark shadow slumped against the wall could be seen at the very end, silent and unmoving.

"Maurice..." The shadow moved upon the breaking of the silence, and when it took notice of Cornelius' presence a low and loud growl erupted.

"So you've finally decided to show your sorry ass to me." He spoke with bitterness. "Come to gloat over the pathetic man who's lost everything in his life, even his damn chance to get revenge on the ones who ruined it have you?"

"I didn't come here for that." The old man replied calmly. "Only came to see how you were doing."

"Well as you can see, I'm having the time of my life stuck in this shit hole." Maurice said, his voice dripping with sarcasm. Cornelius took a step further in and squinted his eyes to get a better look at Maurice. He was crouched down on the ground, sitting on a small broken crate and fiddling his thumbs with nothing better to do. The other man took this opportunity to look at Cornelius as well, and a small smirk appeared on the side of his face when he got a good look at the other man. "You've gotten older." Cornelius didn't take any offense to what the other said.

"So have you." He replied. Indeed the man who once was young and full of ambition and energy had transformed into a thin and frail man with slightly balding hair and was clad in dirty, torn and ragged clothes. His sallow face was filled with anger and hatred for Cornelius as the man narrowed his eyes at him. His overly lightweight appearance made him look just as old as Cornelius was, despite the 7 year gap in their age. Silence fell between the two men as their conversation came to an abrupt stop. Cornelius looked around the dungeon and saw no windows to indicate the time, though it probably didn't matter since it was still raining hard outside. The steel bars, he noted, were covered in a green algae that had grown without anyone to clean up the room. And there were a few stains on the walls whose origins Cornelius couldn't guess. After a few more minutes Maurice sighed as he leaned back against the wall of his cell.

"What the hell do you want from me? I'm getting tired of looking at your face." He asked with irritation. "Why don't you go up there with all your little buddies and dance and sing and laugh merrily for being such great and honorable people? Though there might be one person who won't be doing that now, am I right?" Maurice spoke with a large sarcastic smirk on his face that made Cornelius' blood boil. The other man clenched his hands into fists, trembling slightly at how hard he was clenching them, and gazed at the other man with accusation.

"How could you do it? Why did you kill Carrie?"

"The answer's pretty simple actually." Maurice began casually. "That woman and I had an agreement. I would help her get her other self back while the rest of you were busy running around in chaotic circles, and she would hand over the coin to me so I could leave this place." He closed his eyes and shook his head with mock regret. "But as you can recall, things didn't exactly go that way. I did help her merge, and she had the coin in her possession. But she didn't hand it over to me. Instead, she decided to use it to bring herself home." At this point he gritted his teeth and narrowed his eyes at nothing in particular. "After everything I did to help her, she betrayed me and was about to go back to our world with my discovery! I had to punish her for her disobedience. It was only right for me to do so."

"Right?" Cornelius repeated softly. Then he repeated it a second time as he looked at Maurice incredulously. "Right? You consider what you've done something right?! What you've done is completely against morality! Murder has never been considered the right way, and it never will! How could you raise that gun to a young woman and kill her without any remorse or regret?" Maurice didn't reply to his attacks or try to defend himself as he turned his gaze away from the other, having had enough.

"If you're going to go on lecturing me about what's right and wrong in this world, then save your breath and get away from my sight."

"Maurice..." Cornelius didn't want to give up just yet. He still had some hope for his old friend. "Is this truly the person you've become? What about the Maurice I knew before? You can't be all evil now. Even though you've merged with your darker side, I know that there is still some good in you. Even if it's only a little." The prisoner's lips curled up into an amused smile before he finally broke into laughter.

"What a load of bullshit you're spitting out! Evil? Good? Is there a difference between the two? I suppose you thought that I was 'good' before I merged. People like you who refuse to see the truth have no understanding at all of what that coin is capable of. You and the rest see us as the "evil ones", darker versions of yourselves. But what you don't know is, we're nothing like you think of us. We are simply who we are because we come from you. We have the same goals, the same ideals. Only we have the drive and the ambition to do whatever it takes to get it. You and others like you are afraid and limit yourselves to what you can do while we make the most of what we have and what we're capable of. Believe what you want of us, but in our eyes, you are the evil ones for refusing to accept us as who we are and trying to make us bend to your will!"

"We refuse to do everything we can because we know that there are consequences to our actions!" Cornelius argued back. "We believe that there is always another way; a peaceful and fair way to everything. While people like you use others to your advantage and think of nothing but yourself and what benefits you, we consider the lives of others and how they'll be affected by what we do and what we want. That's why we're not as selfish as you are!"

"And look where that got you." Maurice spat back. "A poor, old, pathetic man who has nothing and no one with him. Desperate to try and get his "good friend" back in good graces because he's so lonely and too sickeningly dependent of others' strength to be able to do things by himself! You've always been the weakest one Cornelius, even now when you're trying to help out others you do nothing but bring even more trouble and pain. What would Thomas and Clarissa think when they see that you've failed their daughter and destroyed her poor soul through her friends' death?" Red fury began to rise in Cornelius, especially when he mentioned all three people he cared for. It hit a nerve in him and allowed the anger and frustration that had been bottled up spread outward. The other man briskly walked away from Maurice furiously without another word. His mind was focused on one thing, and one thing only.

He came back a few minutes later with two sheathed cutlasses in one hand. He grabbed the key hanging on the wall by the first cell then made his way back to Maurice. The prisoner watched him curiously though he wasn't alarmed by the sight of the weapons. The jingling of keys followed by a click on the steel bars caused him to raise one eyebrow and one side of his lip in an amused smirk.

"What's all this then? What are you plotting on?" Cornelius, whose gaze upon the other was coated with intense anger, opened the steel bar and stood there in front of Maurice. A loud clatter came from the sword that Cornelius threw on the ground in front of the other and this caused Maurice's eyes to widen incredulously.

"I want you to fight me."


	41. Between Good and Bad

**_"Even the good men aren't immune to committing mistakes and straying from the right path." - James Norrington_**

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* * *

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**Chapter 41 - Between Good and Bad**

"How long has it been since you last saw him?" Jack asked as he, Carter and Marine all stood in front of the empty prison cell. Right after Carter had reported that Cornelius and Maurice were missing, the three immediately rushed below deck to investigate. The young pirate scratched the back of his head as he tried to recall his memory.

"Let's see...he arrived on the Black Pearl before you and Marine did. He spoke to me and said that he was going to go visit the prisoner. Then a few minutes later the two of you arrived. I went down to check on Cornelius since he was taking so long and when I got there, they were gone."

"That means they haven't gone that far." Jack muttered. "Carter, go to the tavern and call on Gibbs. Tell them to search for Cornelius and the prisoner and report back to me as quickly as you can. They're bound to be somewhere here on the island. They won't be able to leave in this storm."

"Aye aye captain!" Carter ran back up the stairs as quickly as he could to do as Jack ordered. They could hear the continuous pounding of the rain outside, though it seemed to be lightening a little as the minutes passed by. Marine glanced at Jack worriedly as she thought about Cornelius and the possibilities.

"I'm really worried about this. Cornelius couldn't have decided to release Maurice and run away with him right? What if Maurice did something to him?" The pirate smiled at her reassuringly as he led her back up to the main deck.

"Relax love, we'll find him soon. I'm sure he's doing all right." Though even if he said it, he wasn't so sure himself. It was more likely that Maurice had killed or injured Cornelius then threw him to the side while he ran away. Still, it was best to hope that it hasn't come to that. He knew that it wouldn't be a good idea to share his opinion on the matter with the female pirate still recovering from her previous grief.

"I'm going to look for him." Marine said as she began to walk faster up the stairs. Jack grabbed her arm and pulled her back a little as he stepped up beside her. She narrowed her eyes at him and was about to open her mouth to argue when Jack beat her to it.

"I'm coming with you." He said. "I know it's no use convincing you otherwise so I might as well come along and make sure you don't do anything stupid like the whelp did." He made no further discussion on the matter as he moved ahead of Marine. The black haired female pirate stared up at Jack then shook her head and hurried after him after remembering that they were currently pressed for time. She decided not to argue anymore and was simply grateful that Jack was just as eager to move as she was. Any other thoughts she had were pushed back by her worry over Cornelius. When the two went up from below deck, the rain was still coming down from the sky. Jack first went to grab the umbrella he left in the cabin, despite Marine's protests, before he led them down the gangplank and onto the docks. They didn't run around in search of the older man immediately; they simply stood there in thought. Even Marine was at a loss and the rush and impatience she felt before began to fade.

"Where could he have gone?" Marine asked Jack.

"The others would most likely be looking in town." Jack replied. "We ought to look some place where no one would think of looking."

"Well...we wouldn't think of looking here since we just assumed that they won't be leaving the island." Marine suggested. Jack pursed his lips in thought before nodding.

"Aye, that sounds like a good idea. Let's just go through all the ships in port. We'll spot them eventually." He said in agreement. Together the two of them walked through the docks under the umbrella, inspecting each ship that was there. They spoke with people who were keeping an eye on the ships and were disappointed to find that none of them had seen Cornelius or Maurice. As the minutes passed by and as they went through each ship, Marine began to feel less and less hope at finding either one of them. She gave a heavy sigh as the remaining ship they checked on gave them no good result.

"I don't think they're here Jack...we should go look somewhere else." She said. The pirate captain said nothing as his gaze focused on something that was somewhere beyond the docks. Marine glanced at him in confusion as she tried to look at the same direction. She squinted hard through the thin sheet of rain that continuously fell on them but couldn't see anything at all. After a while she gave up and looked back at the pirate captain once more. "Jack? What's wrong? What do you see?" She asked him.

"It might be unimportant but...my well tuned instincts are telling me that we must head over that direction." He replied as he pointed a finger at the direction they were looking at. Marine was slightly doubtful of Jack's 'instincts', but anything was better than nothing and so she agreed to be led to wherever it was that Jack was sensing. She thanked the man they were speaking to then went along with Jack away from the docks and towards an area not usually visited by many. Marine began to see some sense in why Jack was particularly interested in the place. It was filled with makeshift houses, and men either sick, dying or dead drunk. Life and warmth seemed to be missing and a gloom engulfed the whole area like a thick blanket. There was even a large pile of trash on top of one of the houses that looked like it was going to collapse on it as well as the people living within it with a slight gust of wind.

The gloomy, unwelcoming environment made Marine feel nervous and anxious as she looked from side to side in fear of someone suddenly coming out to attack them. The dark shadows as well as the rain could easily hide anyone who wanted to be unseen. Marine couldn't help but wish that she had her whole soul back so she would be more confident walking down a dangerous place. Jack on the other hand was calm and relaxed as he walked alongside her, though he was very close to her and had his hand wrapped around her waist protectively. The two of them walked through the quiet road, looking around the area in search for any sign of Maurice or Cornelius. As they continued walking, Marine glanced at Jack and opened her mouth as she was about to say something. But then she hesitated and closed it, then opened it again only to close it. Finally after several more minutes she took a deep breath and spoke.

"Do you see anything?" She asked.

"Nothing that you don't see yourself." Jack replied. "And this rain is not helping..." Marine frowned at him as she worked harder to try and find something that would be of importance to them. Despite her efforts she still couldn't see anything.

"What if we split up? That would broaden our searching area and it might make it quicker for us to find them." She suggested. At first Jack couldn't understand what Marine said and blinked while furrowing his brows in confusion. Then as he registered the rest of Marine's words he realized what Marine wanted to do and stopped his walking abruptly, bringing Marine along to a stop as well. He immediately removed his protective hold on her and turned his gaze to her while making sure that they were still both under the umbrella.

"What? No! Never! Absolutely not!" He cried.

"Geez, that's one too many negative expressions..." Marine muttered as she observed Jack stomp his foot on the ground like an angry child. She began thinking how cute it looked until she remembered their predicament and narrowed her eyes up at him. "And why not?" She asked angrily. Before Jack could answer her, she raised an arm to stop him. "Oh wait! If my memory serves me right, you don't think I'm strong enough to defend myself. Is that it?!" She cried rhetorically. Jack swerved his hand around to indicate the area as he stared at her incredulously.

"Do you not see what I am seeing now? Do you not sense how dangerous and suspicious this area is?! It is a very, very bad idea to 'split up'" He told her, raising two fingers on each hand and bending them down to mark a quotation when he mentioned the last phrase.

"In case you've forgotten, I handled myself well enough in the fight back at Tia's shack!" She retorted back with annoyance. "Why can't you have more faith in me and just believe that I'll be fine?"

"Because considering your current state I don't think you're fine enough to be walking about a dangerous area by yourself!" Marine gritted her teeth as she continued to glare up at Jack. That was when an idea hit her and she gave Jack a very forced grin. The pirate captain blinked at her in surprise and was even more taken aback when she turned her back on him and walked out from under the umbrella. He began to run after her in confusion. "Marine? Marine! What in god's name are you doing now?" He cried aloud. Marine stopped walking long enough to look back at Jack.

"I've decided to search somewhere else! Somewhere safer." She emphasized on the last word and lifting her nose up smugly, she turned back to walk away. "See you later!" Jack was still trying to catch up to her, calling her attention and shouting for her to come back when out of the corner of his eye he spotted a few men making their way towards him with suspicious glares and devious grins. He stopped calling and stopped running to stand there calmly as they surrounded him in a circle. Better that Marine was walking away safe from harm rather than become involved in a fight like he was about to be. A hand slowly hovered over the sheathed cutlass hanging on the side of his hip as he regarded the men with a friendly grin.

"Well good day to you mates, how can I be of service?"

* * *

After Carter arrived at the tavern and told everyone the news as well as Jack's orders, the whole group divided themselves into several groups to search for any sign of Cornelius and Maurice all over the town. Norrington, much to his annoyance, had unknowingly been paired up with Jones and was now regretting that he ever agreed to it. They were merely walking along the wet and muddy road like a couple of men who enjoyed walking under the rain. There was no rush or drive to look for the two missing people at all. It wasn't like Norrington was in any rush to find them, but even he would at least show a bit of earnest in their search.

"Must I remind you that we are in search of Cornelius and the prisoner and not out to shop idly?" Norrington asked as he and Jones stopped in front of a small store whose window had all kinds of jewelry and accessories displayed.

"No, you don't have to. I'm perfectly aware of that. But take a look at that shiny piece of stone over there." Jones said as he pointed at something that was further back among the items. "It probably costs more than our wages combined!"

"I fail to see how you can casually regard your thievery as an occupation. It is neither that nor is it in equal level to being a man of the Royal Navy." Norrington told him. Jones looked up at him and had an exaggerated, mockingly offended expression on his face.

"I'll have you know that it is a very endearing job that demands a lot from you. It's not so easy being a savior to the poor and needy you know, especially the kids." Catching the seriousness of the former Commodore's stare, he sighed and looked away from both Norrington and the shop window. "It's a lot better than what others would do in my situation. People like you think it's so easy living a simple, honest life when it's nothing like that." He looked back at him with a glare as he clenched his hands into fists. "Not everyone is lucky enough to live in a place where they're protected by the red coats. There are a lot more others who are either ignored or abused by men like yourself. We've got no choice but to fend for ourselves and use any means possible to survive. Don't give me that look Norrington, you know as well as I do that your occupation isn't always so noble as you want it to be."

"Yes, I admit. It is inevitable that there would be several...inconsistencies within the Royal Navy. I am not blind to such things." Norrington replied hotly. "And for your information, I fully understand the hardships and struggle in life that people have to face. We don't live as easily and grand as you think; we have our own share of sufferings and trials. But that gives you no reason to turn to the immoral and do whatever you please. Men like you who easily give in to such vices are nothing but lazy, ungrateful cowards who wish to find the easy way out."

"Oh really? Is that what you think? Then tell me, just what do you expect us to do when everyone and everything's against us?! Would you expect us to continue living like bloody mindless fools? I'll have you know that what you claim is our way out is in no way easy! We have to do things we don't want to; some of us are trapped in a situation where any kind of decision would lead to our deaths or our demise. Do you think everyone likes being branded as criminals and chased around by the likes of you? We never asked for this to happen to us! It just does."

"And whose fault is that may I ask? We never told any of you to turn to such dealings. Do you think my job easy? Even as the Commodore there were things that I wanted to do but couldn't! There are higher powers who control us and we have no choice but to move as puppets and pawns in their game. If we refused, we would end up in exactly the same position as you. We're not gods who can solve each and every problem that the world has thrown at us. People believe that as the Royal Navy we're expected to help out everyone and make everyone's lives easier. And when it doesn't happen, people blame us because they refuse to blame themselves. I am sick and tired of being treated as the enemy when all I wanted to do was to help out in as much as I can." Norrington realized that his voice had risen to a loud level and that he was becoming too caught up in his emotions. Seeing Jones looking at him in surprise only added to that realization. He looked away from the thief and began to walk forward, trying his hardest not to show how much he was affected.

"Let's go. We have wasted enough time as it is." He said nothing else and let Jones run after him when the thief saw that he was being left behind. They went back to their search, now more focused than before as they did their best to avoid getting into another heated argument. The rain kept pouring down on them, drenching both men from head to toe as they continued to walk through the empty streets. There were times when Jones wanted to open his mouth and say something to the former Commodore, but he felt embarrassed and stopped before he could speak. Norrington on the other hand walked on as he always did and paid no attention to the awkwardness that seemed to surround them.

The silence between the two men lasted for as long as they walked. Jones didn't mind some peace and quiet and had no need to complain about it, but he couldn't stop feeling guilty for the things he said and took Norrignton's silence as a sign of anger. Finally with a small sigh he looked at the other and spoke.

"Hey Norrington...I'm sorry about the things I said earlier. I didn't mean to be so angry at you. It's just that..." His words were halted as his face met Norrington's back. He staggered back in surprise and looked at the other man in confusion and slight irritation. "Why did you stop all of a sudden? I was in the middle of trying to apologize to you!"

"Shh! Be quiet!" Norrington whispered as he looked over his shoulder at the thief with narrowed eyes. Jones was about to ask why when the other man grabbed his arm all of a sudden and dragged him to the side of the path behind the corner of a house. They pressed themselves against the wall, with Norrington peering at the edge and trying to keep himself hidden as much as possible. A few minutes passed and still the other man said nothing to explain his sudden actions to Jones. Standing there and staring at Norrington in confusion, the thief grabbed a hold of the former Commodore's shoulder and pulled him back to look at him face to face.

"Tell me what's going on!" He demanded. Then seeing the angry, warning look on Norrington's face, lowered his voice until it was so soft that anyone could hardly hear what he was saying. "Why are we hiding behind here like a couple of rats? What did you see and why did you have to drag me with you here?"

"If you had been paying attention like you should be," Norrington began, making Jones roll his eyes at him. "You would have noticed the two men facing each other with swords ahead of us. I thought it would be better if we knew what was happening before stepping in." Before he could say anything else Jones pushed past Norrington and peered around the corner the way he did a few minutes ago. Biting back the irritation he felt, Norrington waited for Jones to finish his observation. The thief glanced ahead of them and indeed saw the dark figures of two men standing face to face. They seemed to be talking with each other though he couldn't hear the words being exchanged or see anything that the two were doing. After watching them for a few more seconds he turned his gaze back to Norrington.

"So what about those two? We have nothing to do with them so why did we have to hide?"

"It seems the rain has impeded your sight to a great level." Norrington told him, causing Jones to glare back. Before he could make a retort Norrington went on. "Those two men over there are Cornelius and the prisoner. And judging the way they're both holding their weapons, I can safely assume that they're about to engage in a fight."

"What?! Are you serious?" Jones peered around the corner once more as he observed the two men beyond them. He tried hard to recognize the two men but he couldn't see them clearly. His trust in Norrington, though it wasn't that great because of the fact that he was part criminal and the other was a law-abiding navy man, was enough to make him believe that Norrington was telling the truth. Just as he was about to move away from the corner, Jones caught sight of the two men suddenly springing into action. He widened his eyes as he saw them attacking each other with blades and looked at Norrington in a panic. "Christ! They're fighting each other now! We have to stop them!" He cried. Before Norrington could stop him, Jones was already running as quickly as he could. The former commodore cursed inwardly as he ran after Jones towards the two fighters.

Swords flashed silver in the sheet of rain as steel clashed against steel. Despite the weather it seemed that both Cornelius and Maurice were both doing pretty well in their parry. Jones had gone after Cornelius and grabbed both of the other man's arms, blocking him and pushing him back, away from Maurice while Norrington made his way to Maurice and did the same thing. The prisoner was quick to give in and had already lowered his sword, but Cornelius was more insistent and struggled to move Jones away.

"Stand aside Jones! I have to do this! It's the only way I can repent for the wrongs I've done."

"Oh and I suppose you think that by killing me, you'll be forgiven just like that?" Maurice cried, forcing himself to look at Cornelius straight in the eye despite Norrington's efforts to keep him back. "I'm not the only one who caused all of this Cornelius. You know deep inside of you that you're the only one who's at fault here. If it wasn't for you, I wouldn't even be here! Who wanted to do this excavation in Mexico? Who wanted to call me in the middle of the night? Who begged me to join the excavation in Mexico and promised it to be a worthwhile trip? You were the one who convinced me to come, and I expected to get what I worked hard for damn it! But you took it away from me and ruined my life; just like you took away a parent's love from a child, subjected her to all of this pain and suffering. You're to blame for everything that's happened Cornelius. If there's someone here who deserves to die, that ought to be you!"

"Oh I'll deal with that eventually. I know that I'm partly to blame for everything that's happened and I don't plan on running away from it. But first I have to deal with you!" Cornelius answered back. Jones gritted his teeth and braced himself as Cornelius pushed and wrestled with him. He could hardly believe that the sudden boost of strength coming from the old man was truly his.

"Cornelius, stop this! Leave him be. You know this isn't right."

"No one said it had to be right." Cornelius muttered. "Maurice said so himself. For all you know, I could be the evil one. After all the crap I've been through I deserve to be a little selfish and do whatever I want. This is best for everyone, especially for Marine. To pay her for bringing her pain."

"You're not evil." Norrington spoke as he looked over his shoulder at Cornelius. "Maurice is trying to push you to do something you'll regret. Killing him, then killing yourself will not help Marine. She won't feel better knowing that you died. It won't change the way things happened now; it'll only make things worse. You don't have to keep blaming yourself for everything that's happened. No one's blaming you, especially not Marine. If you truly want to help, then stay alive and do something to actually help her."

"Come on Cornelius! Listen to Norrington!" Jones pleaded. "Listening to a former Commodore ought to be better than listening to this no-good killer." As Cornelius looked at both of the men, his struggles slowed down. Holding his hand out, the thief watched as Cornelius grimaced and passed his sword to him in defeat. He looked down at the ground shamefully as Jones looked at Norrington and grinned. "Well now, I'm glad that's over. Let's head back to the Black Pearl and put this guy back in his cell."

* * *

"You know Cornelius, you had everyone really worried." The walk back to the docks was led by Norrington, who placed Maurice in front to keep an eye on him. The older man didn't reply to Jones as he walked behind the group slowly. Although he said nothing, his posture and the ashamed and saddened expression on his face spoke volumes of what he was feeling. The thief slowed down as well and set his pace to match that of Cornelius'. "How's about we have a game of cards when we get back? I did tell you I was going to get back at you for my previous loss. Maybe we can even bring drinks and drunk ourselves silly. We can even invite Will and take advantage of his inexperience! What do you say?"

"That sounds great Jones, but I don't really feel like playing today, I'm sorry. Maybe some other time." Cornelius replied. The thief frowned and nodded as he looked back ahead of him. He kept glancing worriedly at the older man as they walked, not sure of what else to say. Cornelius said and did nothing else aside from walking though. They made it back to the Black Pearl without any further troubles from the two old men. After putting Maurice back in his cell, and as Jones ran off to give the news to everyone that they had found the two men, Norrington and Cornelius made their way back to the tavern. It was just as they were about to enter the tavern when Norrington moved past Cornelius and spoke in a soft voice that no one but Cornelius himself could hear.

"Even the good men aren't immune to committing mistakes and straying from the right path." Cornelius stared ahead at Norrington in surprise, watching him as he made his way to a table and sat down on a chair. He took a deep breath and closed his eyes as he absorbed the words the former Commodore said. Then he followed after him and placed a hand on the other's shoulder as he gave him a small but largely grateful smile.

"Thank you." He murmured. Norrington didn't answer but he nodded and raised his hand to call the attention of a waitress, acting as if he had never spoken to the older man. Cornelius chuckled softly and shook his head slightly before he sat down beside Norrington and waited for the others to arrive. They didn't have to wait too long though, as more and more of Jack's men began streaming in through the warm and cozy arms of the tavern from outside. Some immediately followed after Norrington and ordered something for themselves while others came up to Cornelius and spoke to him, making sure he was all right, before doing the same. Jack was one of the first to arrive and sat down on a chair with his boots on top of the table. He was nursing a bottle of rum in his hand as he pointed accusingly at Cornelius.

"I demand an explanation from you. Freeing the prisoner then running off to who-knows-where. I had a rough time trying to find you. Had to fight off a couple of thugs and drunkards in the middle of it as well. You weren't planning on joining forces with the prisoner are you?"

"No Jack, I intended to end his life, as well as mine." Cornelius replied with a heavy sigh. "Norrington and Jones arrived before I could do it though. And I've learned my lesson. I promise I won't do it again. I'm sorry for the trouble I caused you and everyone else."

"I'm sure you won't." Jack said, nodding at him. "And we'll make sure of that as well. You know, just as a precaution." He added with a grin. While Jack took a large swig from his bottle, Will and Elizabeth came into the tavern. They made their way to where the group was and smiled when they saw that Cornelius was safe and unharmed.

"Cornelius! I'm so glad you're all right. What happened? Are you hurt?" Elizabeth asked worriedly. Before anyone could answer, a hand appeared on Cornelius' shoulder. The old man jumped in surprise and turned his gaze to Teague who was grinning at him before he sat down as well. He grabbed the bottle of rum that Jack had and downed the rest of its contents, making the younger man frown and cross his arms in anger and irritation.

"You made quite a ruckus my friend. Next time you want to get attention try doing it in a less extravagant manner please." Teague said, impressively ignoring his son. Cornelius chuckled at him.

"I'll try, but I won't make any promises." He turned his gaze to Elizabeth who was still looking at him in concern. "I'm fine lass, no need to worry about me too much."

"What happened Cornelius?" Will asked as he and Elizabeth joined the rest of the group. "Where's Maurice? Has he run away?"

"Unfortunately he's doing fine as well. Brought him back to the Pearl's prison cells." Jack answered. "Though I wouldn't mind it if Cornelius had killed him. It'd be one less pain on my side. Plus, the man deserved it after what he did."

"If Marine didn't kill him, then none of you should." Elizabeth told them in a firm voice. "Out of everyone here it's Marine who deserves to be angry at him. She was affected the most by what happened, and if she has the strength not to kill Maurice then the rest of you ought to do the same."

"I know this conversation has been put off for quite some time, but now that things have settled down with both Marine's state and this whole mess, what exactly are we planning on doing with him?" Will asked the group. "I'm sure none of you have any plans of letting him go free after what he's done. And you can't possibly plan on keeping him in the cells for the rest of his life do you?" Jack gave Will a horrified gasp.

"What? I won't have extra baggage on my ship and be forced to spend on someone who isn't going to work for his food and passage. Never! I say we maroon him on an uninhabited island and leave him there with absolutely nothing at all. And I know just the island that will fit our requirements." He said with a grin.

"Good enough for me." Cornelius muttered. "It's not how I would have wanted to end him, but it's enough."

"Then we'll set off as soon as this blasted rain clears." Jack said with finality. "Now I don't know about any of you, but all that running and fighting off thugs has made me hungry." The pirate captain raised his hand and called out to a waitress just as Jones came walking into the tavern with a deep and heavy sigh of relief.

"Finally! It took a while to spread the news to everyone but I did it somehow. I'm starving! Order me a meal too Jack!" He said.

"Right. You're sure you spoke to everyone? What about Marine?" Jack asked. "She hasn't come back from her own search." Jones gave Jack a weird look and tilted his head to the side in confusion.

"Marine? Wasn't she with you? I didn't see her anywhere and I assumed that she was searching all over together with you so I didn't bother looking for her." His good mood slowly disappeared as he saw the expression on Jack's face go from relaxed to anxious. "You...weren't with her?"

"We decided to search for Cornelius separately." Jack replied as he pushed his chair back and stood up. With a curse he began making his way back outside the tavern. "I knew I shouldn't have let her go off on her own! Why does this always have to happen to me?" Will, Elizabeth and the others were all standing up as well.

"We'll help you look for her Jack." Elizabeth said.

"Fine. Do what you want. But just make sure none of you get lost too! I'm growing tired of having to search for someone who's run off on their own." Jack grumbled with irritation. Before he exited the tavern, he grabbed a hold of Gibbs who was about to come in and pulled him to the side. "Listen, Marine hasn't come back yet. Stay here and call us if she comes here." Without waiting for a reply, knowing full well that his first mate would always follow his orders, Jack ran off into the streets. The others followed and decided to move in separate directions to make the search quicker. Everyone prayed that Marine was all right and that nothing bad happened to her.

* * *

It had been a while since Marine parted ways with Jack. She continued to walk down several roads and streets under the rain in search of the two men. But as much as she tried to search for both Cornelius and Maurice, she still couldn't see any sign of them. She hoped that someone had, and that they found the two still in one piece. She wondered if Jack's instincts had been right and he had already found them. But if he had, then he would have gone looking for her to tell her that they had been found. So it either meant that Jack still hadn't found them or something else happened. Marine stopped walking and leaned against the wall with a hand covering her face. Without Jack or anyone else to distract her, her thoughts ran wildly and continuously. It was like she was making up for all the times she was unconscious or was incapable of thought. Not only that, her thoughts were filled with suspicion and pessimism; something she wouldn't have thought of doing if she had been back in her own world.

Her own world. How long had it been since she's thought of the world away from pirates and old english centuries? To her, it felt like the person in that world, and the person she was now were two entirely different people. Vanessa Silvestre and Marine, to her, had become two people who lived separately from each other. Would it have been possible if Vanessa lived in their world even now while Marine was still in the world of pirates? Marine had never left the world of pirates after all, she had been here ever since she was born.

She would have went on thinking, about other things and more specifically, about her relationship with Jack and her feelings on him. But her thoughts were cut short as she heard the sound of footsteps close by. She felt her whole body tense and quickly moved behind the walls to keep herself hidden. Peering through the edge, she spotted a dark figure who was walking slowly, head turning left and right as if searching for someone. Marine didn't want to think on it much, but she had the feeling that the mysterious person had been following her and was now looking for her. She stayed silent in the hopes that the pursuer would give up and walk away, but as she took a step back, she didn't see the cat that was lying on the ground behind her and accidentally stepped on it. The cat's shriek made her jump and curse as the dark figure turned its attention at her direction and began to run towards her.

She had no plans on waiting to see who it was or try and fight back against the person. Despite her stubborn streak she knew that she had no chance at fighting someone without a weapon in hand. She turned around and was about to run away when she heard the person behind her call out to her. The voice of the woman, though not familiar, made her freeze in her tracks. At first she thought it was her own clone, come back to finish what she had started. But the person continued speaking and her words made Marine realize with great relief that it wasn't her clone.

"Wait! Please, don't run. I'm not going to hurt you. I just want to talk to you." Marine turned around and watched as the mysterious person stepped up in front of her. She could see that the dark figure was a woman who wore a black cloak to cover her whole body. She stood there and watched warily as the other woman looked up at her and gazed in silence.

"Um...can I help you with something?" Marine asked. She couldn't help but feel strange as the woman continued to stare in silence. She felt like some freak or experiment that was being scrutinized. Finally, the other woman raised both of her pale hands towards the hood and slowly, she pulled it off from her head, revealing long black hair that fell over her shoulders. She stared up at Marine with tears in her eyes.

"I know who you are. You're Maria Rianna Nelee." Marine widened her eyes in surprise and felt a cold hand grip her heart. Almost no one knew her real name, except those who knew her father. The ones who did were mostly made up of men, pirates and sailors. Her father rarely introduced her to a woman, and what's more is this was a woman she didn't recognize. She shook her head at the older woman and took a step back from her. Disbelief and shock were the primary expressions on her face as she inspected the other woman closely. Now that she thought about it, she couldn't help but notice that they had a lot of similarities as well. Still, it was too good to be true. Her throat had suddenly gone dry and she swallowed a lump in her throat and wet her lips with her tongue before she addressed the other woman hesitantly.

"Mom?"


	42. Back to the Ship

**AN:** After reading back on the previous chapters I've realized that Jack has been less Jack than he should be. Yes this is entirely my fault and I hope that you guys will forgive me. I'll try my best to bring back his Jack-ness into what's left of my story. Suggestions and comments are welcome. Now, go on and enjoy the latest chapter!

* * *

_**"So if you have nothing else that you need here, we'd best take our leave." - Jack Sparrow**_

**Chapter 42 - Back to the Ship**

Marine watched as the older woman went about the room clearing the mess that was scattered about, and fixing things up. She was holding a glass of water that Clarissa had given her as soon as they arrived but what she really wanted was to grab a whole bottle of rum and drown in it. She could hardly believe where she was and who she was with. Her father always told her stories about her mother, how she was the most beautiful and most gentle person he's ever met. Beautiful was hardly the word to describe the woman before her now. She was thin and clad in clothes that could use a wash and a patch-up. Her skin was sickly pale and was wrinkled with old age. But still, deep down she knew that it was definitely her mother, even if it was the clone who had won and taken over.

Clarissa took a while longer in preparing for her special guest. She already had a pot simmering a meal in the stove and was fixing the table with plates and other utensils. No matter how hard Marine tried to dissuade the other woman, she was going to get a meal. It wasn't a gourmet's meal or something equally extravagant, but it was edible. The possibility that Clarissa had poisoned her cooking never crossed the daughter's mind. After a few minutes, while she was waiting for the stew in the pot to warm, Clarissa sat down beside Marine and looked at her fondly with a smile.

"The last time I saw you, you were still a tiny baby in my arms. Your father never let me speak to you, or write to you. He made sure that I was always a town away from you." She said. Marine stayed silent. She didn't know what to say or how to react to the fact that she was talking to her mother's clone. She jumped and moved back a little in surprise as a cold hand touched her cheek. When she glanced at Clarissa, she saw that the other woman seemed hurt at her reaction. "I always wondered how our first meeting would look like. And always it was you shunning away your mother, the way you did just then." Marine narrowed her eyes at Clarissa.

"That's not fair. I never met you until now, and you expect me to run into your arms and act as if we've known each other our whole lives? Could you blame me after everything that's happened to me? To you? Who's to say you're not in league with my clone? She could be hiding somewhere nearby as we speak, waiting to catch me off guard." Clarissa had a look of confusion on her face.

"Clone? But you don't - " The older woman paused in thought then widened her eyes as she caught on to what Marine was saying. "Oh my god. You're the other child." Marine grimaced at hearing the term but choose to ignore it and answer the other's question.

"Yes mom, I'm the child of the other Clarissa. The one who was sent to our original world in an attempt to hide all this away from me. The first time I came here I hadn't used the coin. But my best friend used it accidentally and so with the want to look for her I unknowingly used the coin to bring myself back here. That's how my clone appeared." She glanced at her mother and sighed. "A lot of other things happened, but that pretty much sums it up. Now I'm trying to keep from disappearing in the hands of my clone." Clarissa said nothing immediately as she turned her gaze to the stove and stood up. She opened the lid and peered inside, stirring the contents with a wooden spoon before taking a sip. It was more because she wanted to have some time for herself to take in everything that Marine had said as well as the fact that she didn't know how to reply to something like that. But after a while she looked back at Marine with a frown.

"No matter which daughter you are, you are still my daughter." She said. The black haired female pirate stared at her mother as she went back to stirring.

"Was that your way of trying to assure me that I won't get killed in your home?" Clarissa said nothing on it as she took a bowl from her cupboard and poured some of the stew into it. Then she held it out to Marine hot and steaming. Marine stared at it for a long while before she took the bowl from the other woman's hands and accepted the spoon. She held the spoon in her hands and played with the stew in the bowl as she looked at Clarissa.

"It's not poison." The other woman said.

"I know. But I'm not really that hungry." Marine returned as she finally placed the spoon down and leaned back from the table. She couldn't stop looking at Clarissa, taking everything in and trying to see how much her mother had changed over the years. Comparing her to the young mother she met in her dreams was like comparing a beggar to a princess. There was a lot that she wanted to say, things she wanted to tell her mother, but she didn't know how to say them or if she should say them. Marine wished she were talking to her mother in her dreams. It had been a lot easier then. Finally she took a deep breath and collected the questions she had in mind.

"Are you...are you working as a prostitute?" Clarissa held her gaze as she answered.

"I used to. Now I'm a simple seamstress." Marine swallowed the lump in her throat. Even though she already knew it, hearing the affirmation from her mother still affected her.

"Why?"

"I'm an old woman, one who's beauty had diminished over the years. No man would want to go to bed with me now."

"That's not what I meant." Marine whispered. Clarissa knew what Marine meant as well and sighed as she looked away.

"I guess it was out of some thrill-seeking whim I had back then. I met your father at a young age, and I didn't really get to enjoy a single, independent life. I felt like I was chained and locked in some cell. Sometimes marriage can do that to a person. Don't get me wrong, your father was a wonderful man. A loving, romantic and very loyal man. But I was looking for something else...something risky or adventurous. That opportunity came when I merged with the other and was thrown away by Thomas. I had no one I needed to look after but myself, and so I decided to go for it. I did everything and anything I wanted, and got more. Of course I'm not asking you to forgive me for what I did, or to understand why I did these things."

"I met someone who...who slept with you. A pirate named Hector Barbossa." Marine said. At hearing the name Clarissa couldn't help but smile.

"Ah yes, I remember him clearly. He was one of the regular clients I dealt with before. Do you know him? How is he?"

"Dead." She replied bluntly. "After he tried to kill me and my friends." Clarissa's smile disappeared and she looked at the table.

"I'm sorry to hear that." Marine wasn't so sure whether it was for Barbossa's death or because she knew someone who tried to kill her daughter. Once more the two of them fell into silence with the rain outside the only sound they could hear. As the seconds ticked by, Marine could feel herself grow weary and agitated. She had to remind herself the reason why she was out and had accidentally met her mother in the first place. It must have been some minutes since she met her mother; the others would probably be worried about her. As if reading her mind, Clarissa stood up and cleared the table.

"Your friends must be worried about you. Let me take you wherever it is you're supposed to meet them."

"No, I can go there by myself." Marine said as she stood up from the chair as well. "You don't have to come with me."

"I see. Well thank you for taking the time to come with me." She said as she placed the bowl in the sink. "I know you must be disappointed in me, for what happened to you. I should have been more insistent with Thomas in taking you in or at least in arranging to meet you every so often."

"It's not your fault. And I'm sure things wouldn't have been much different were they to go as you wanted." Marine answered. She watched as the older woman stared at her again, the same way she did when they first spoke to each other a few minutes ago. Then to her surprise Clarissa took a step forward and wrapped her arms around her. Her shoulder was starting to become wet and Marine realized that it was because of Clarissa's tears.

"I'm so sorry. Please forgive this foolish mother of yours for everything. I am so happy that I got to see you at least once in my life. You have grown up to become a very fine woman, and I'm sure that you won't make the same mistakes that I have. Take care of yourself. You...you might not think that I'm your real mother because I'm a clone, but I know that the other Clarissa would want me to let you know that we both love you." A larger lump grew in Marine's throat and she fought hard to keep the tears from falling. She closed her eyes and wanted nothing more than to push the other woman and get away from her as far as she could. Somehow she succeeded in keeping a straight face as Clarissa pulled away and wiped the tears on her face with her hand. Marine quickly turned around and walked out of the room without saying goodbye. She didn't think she could last any longer if she took one more look at her mother. Behind her, Clarissa watched the back of her daughter grow smaller and smaller as she walked away, until she was nothing more than a speck.

* * *

When Marine entered the tavern she noted that there was no sign of Jack or the rest of the crew. It wasn't raining by the time she got there so she figured that maybe Jack had ordered his crew to head for the Black Pearl in preparation for their leave. But Elizabeth, Will and the rest of the people who weren't part of Jack's crew were nowhere to be found. She began to grow slightly worried as she stood there, wondering what she should do. Before she could get any ideas though, a hand suddenly clamped on her shoulder, making her jump in surprise. She whirled around then blinked in surprise. She recovered quickly and narrowed her eyes at the other man with irritation.

"Gibbs! What the hell were you trying to do? Scare me to death?!"

"I think you're better at doing that than the rest of us are, lass." The first mate replied. "Jack and the others were worried sick about you because you had been gone for a long while. They're out there searching all over town I'm here to wait in case you arrived here at the tavern." Marine blinked at him once more then sighed.

"What were they thinking? That if I didn't show up on time that I might be in some kind of danger or something? Really..." She muttered.

"They're just looking out for you because they care about you." The older man said in defense. Marine sighed, conceding to him but not liking it.

"I know that." She grumbled. "So now are we supposed to wait for all of them to give up on looking for me and come back to this tavern?" At this Gibbs chuckled and smiled.

"I don't think they'll be giving up anytime soon. I'll go out and let everyone know that you're here and you're safe. You should stay here and wait for them." Marine grumbled some more, but said nothing in objection to what Gibbs had suggested. He turned around and was about to walk when the female pirate remembered something and reached out to grab the back of the other's shirt, stopping him from moving forward.

"Wait! What happened to Cornelius and Maurice?" She asked him worriedly.

"Hm? Oh, Cornelius is fine. Jones and Norrington found him before anything could happen." He explained. Upon hearing this Marine felt a large weight lift off from her shoulders and she breathed in a sigh of relief. Then she nodded to Gibbs with a grateful smile.

"Thank you Gibbs." The first mate smiled at her one last time before walking out of the tavern and leaving her to herself. The crowd was growing larger and was quickly filling up all the chairs and tables in the room. Marine chose one of the tables that was nearest to the entrance and sat down on a chair that faced the door so she could see everyone who entered as she waited for them to return. The first person she recognized who entered the tavern was Jones who was smiling at her as he made his way to her table.

"Hey there Marine! Gibbs told me you came back. You had us all worried."

"Worried over nothing that's for sure." She replied as Jones sat down on a chair beside her.

"So where were you and what took you so long?"

"I was searching for Cornelius and Maurice, like the rest of you have been doing. So what happened to the two? Gibbs told me that it was you and Norrington who found them." The thief relaxed in his chair and leaned back until the two hind legs of the chair were the only thing supporting his weight.

"It wasn't a problem really. We saw them about to get into a brawl with each other so Norrington and I stopped them before they could." He explained. "The prisoner's back where he's supposed to be while Cornelius is out there looking for you too. How come I didn't see you while I was going around telling people that they had been found?" He asked. Marine wondered if she should tell any of them her encounter with her mother. Then she decided to keep it to herself and smiled at Jones as she decided on it.

"Maybe you weren't looking hard enough."

"Marine! Marine, there you are!" Elizabeth cried, interrupting her conversation with Jones. Behind her, Will, Norrington, Tia and Cornelius followed. Marine bit back a sigh as the blond haired woman went up to the female pirate and hugged her tightly. "We were all so worried about you. Where did you go?" She asked. Biting back a sarcastic or bitter remark, the other woman gave a slight shrug of her shoulders.

"I was looking for Cornelius and Maurice just like the rest of you were. Does everyone really believe that I couldn't take care of myself? Geez, you had the whole crew looking for me." She told them. "Nothing important happened." Even as she said this she knew that what she said was an outright lie. The memory of her conversation with Clarissa's clone was still fresh and pained her. She wondered if she would have been better off not meeting her mother, then immediately brushed the thought away. Somehow, even if it hurt her and pained her to know that her mother, clone or not, was still alive and had abandoned her for selfish reasons, a strange weight had lifted from her shoulders. It was like all her worries about her lineage and her blood had been erased. To her it felt like a closure had been made through her meeting with her mother.

She could still feel Clarissa's warmth enveloping her whole body when she hugged her. She could still feel her shirt become wet with the other woman's tears and hear her sobs, asking for forgiveness from her. She took a deep breath as she fought against the urge to cry. Clone or not, she was still her mother, if only through a small part. She and the other Clarissa both gave birth to the same child, a child that had been split apart and sent to two alternate worlds. Marine could still feel some sort of connection to this clone, a mother who had asked her child for forgiveness from a foolish mistake that she made. But it wasn't really a mistake, Marine realized. Mistakes caused regret, which she didn't have. She had no regrets of getting into this kind of situation, of meeting Jack and all the rest, of learning the truth of her identity and of her parents. She had no regrets at all. And that was why there was no reason for her to forgive her mother.

"Marine are you certain that you're all right? You're crying..." Elizabeth said with worry in her tone, causing the black haired female pirate to blink in surprise. She raised a hand to her face and felt wetness on her cheekbones. It took her a second before she realized that she really was crying. Quickly wiping it away, she smiled brightly at the blond haired woman as well as to the rest of the group with her, who were all looking at her with similar worried expressions on their faces.

"You know what? I haven't felt this good in a long while. I feel fine." She told them. Tia smiled as well. She could see that Marine was telling the truth.

"We are glad to hear that dear."

"Marine! What in hell's blazes do you think you were doing?!" The sound of an irritated pirate captain interrupted their conversation and caused them to turn their heads towards the door where Jack and Teague had entered. The former stormed his way towards their table, heading straight for Marine who was looking at him casually.

"I was looking for Cornelius and Maurice in a _safer_ place." She emphasized on the word 'safer' and narrowed her eyes at him at the same time. "Wasn't that what you wanted me to do?"

"I never said anything about you searching in a safer place! I specifically told you that we shouldn't separate from each other!"

"Because it was too dangerous. Therefore I went to search in a safer place."

"And look what's happened! You have my men searching all over town for you!"

"That's only because you were being such a worrywart!"

"A what?" While the rest watched the bickering between the two, Teague leaned closer to Jones.

"Do they fight with each other this often?" He asked in a soft whisper.

"They do occasionally. When they're not avoiding each other or staring romantically at each other." The other replied with a grin. Teague looked back at both Jack and Marine who were still arguing and chuckled to himself. It seemed that the two pirates had no intention of stopping soon so Norrington decided to interrupt them by clearing his throat loudly.

"If you two would not mind, the storm has passed and we still have important errands to do." He said. Jack and Marine looked at the former Commodore then realized that everyone else was staring at them as well and pulled back from each other. The former was still standing and regarded everyone on the table as he gave a nod of approval.

"Right, we still have lots of things to do. There's no time for all of you to sit and have drinks. I've already told Gibbs to gather all the men at the Black Pearl. We're all they're waiting for now. So if you have nothing else that you need here, we'd best take our leave." He turned around and walked first out of the tavern while the rest stood up in unison and followed

* * *

"What an adventure this has been, hasn't it Jack?" The pirate captain, who had been leaning against the railing and looking out at the sea, turned his head to the side and saw Jones moving to stand beside him. He held a bottle in his hand, which he handed over to Jack. There was another bottle in his other hand and he drank from that one while Jack drunk from the bottle Jones gave him.

"The adventure's not over yet." He replied. "Tia has mentioned that she feels the sea snake is in close proximity. It might not be too long before we fall headfirst into yet another grueling battle." The thief gave a considering nod then looked at him with a smirk.

"I guess what they say about you is true; you do have a knack for getting into trouble and danger all the time."

"I do not." Jack said indignantly. "It's trouble and danger that has a knack of finding me even when I'm hiding."

"That makes sense too." Jones commented. "Then again who am I to say that? I've been through my share of adventures too. None of them were as grand as this one, or your previous one. And I don't get to meet attractive, fascinating women like you do." He added with a knowing look. Jack chuckled as he lifted his bottle in recognition. He knew who Jones was talking about and wholeheartedly agreed with him.

"Aye, that's been one compensation for the troubles I've had to endure."

"I bet you get to do more than just meeting them." Jones said teasingly, nudging Jack's ribs with his elbow in a playful manner. "I mean, you're Captain Jack Sparrow! Women can't seem to say no under your strong, handsome charm."

"I appreciate your compliments Jones, but believe it or not I have had more than my share of rejections lately. It seems my so-called charms are waning."

"Ah, you think so? Because I think at least one of those women are trapped. Slowly perhaps, but surely. And I think someone has fallen for her charm as well, even though it might not be as bold and outward as your charms are."

"Ah yes, both Lizzie and the whelp do have their moments." Jack said with a grin. He fell silent after that, swirling the rum inside his bottle with a pensive look on his face. Jones watched him in silence and observed the pirate captain. He had been with Jack, his other friends and his crew long enough to see the same thing they were seeing. He had seen the things Jack was capable of doing for Marine; the things he has already done for her. Even those who didn't know Jack could see that the pirate captain was feeling something for Marine. He guessed that she was the subject of Jack's current thoughts, as the other man stared off into space.

"So, where's Marine and why aren't you shadowing her like a mother hen?" Jones asked. Jack broke away from his thoughts as he turned his gaze to Jones.

"I don't know. She's safe enough on my ship. If she isn't safe here then she couldn't be safe anywhere else." The other spoke as he gave an offhand shrug in reply. Jones began to sense something different in Jack's actions. He furrowed his brows in confusion as Jack went back to gazing out in the sea.

"Is there something wrong? It's been a week since we left the island and you haven't been anywhere near her."

"'Course I have. We've been eating together in the same galley haven't we? We've stood on the same main deck numerous times."

"But it's like you're avoiding her for some reason. Like you don't want to talk to her." Jones had seen Jack evading Marine during the first few days. Whenever Marine would walk up to the pirate captain he would tell her that he was busy with something and walk away. To the thief's surprise Marine didn't go after the pirate or pressed him. She just gave up and went about the ship like she didn't care anymore. "Does this have something to do with what happened back at the tavern?" Jack said nothing at first then finished his bottle of rum and threw it into the sea as he stood straight.

"All that drinking has made me hungry. I'll be down at the galley getting myself something to eat." He said as he began walking away from Jones and went down the stairs leading below deck. He didn't wait for the thief to reply and didn't give him the chance to react. When he reached the galley he looked around in search of someone and made his way over to a table where Cornelius was sitting at, playing a game of cards together with some of his crew.

"Cornelius, I would like to have a word with you." The older man looked at Jack in confusion but stood up and followed the pirate captain to a far corner in the room. They sat down on opposite sides and looked at each other in silence. It was Cornelius who decided to break the silence since Jack seemed to have no intention of speaking first.

"So, what seems to be the problem Jack?" He asked. The pirate was looking around the room, checking to make sure that no one was listening to them and that no one was going to interrupt them. When he was sure that it was all clear he looked back at Cornelius.

"What happens to Marine when she merges with her clone?" Cornelius blinked in surprise and spent a few seconds processing the question.

"Um...well, Marine will get all of her strength back and she'll be able to cross the portal between this world and ours without perishing. The memories that her clone has will also go to her, but her clone will have no control over her. The Marine with us will still be the same Marine."

"You're absolutely certain that she will be the same?"

"Yes, I'm quite sure of that. Thomas was still the same man I knew when he merged with his clone. The dominating personality will remain in their merging." He couldn't help but smile at seeing Jack's worry and patted his hand in a comforting manner. "You have nothing to worry about Jack. Marine will be fine. When this is over, we will all get back to our lives the way they were before any of this happened." Jack said nothing and didn't feel satisfied with the answer the older man gave him. Still, he thanked Cornelius and got up from his chair, excusing himself from the rest as he walked out of the galley and headed towards a door a few paces away. He pressed his ear to the door and heard two voices. When he was sure that they were only talking, he opened the door and poked his head inside. He froze, startled in surprise, then grinned wickedly before the sight of both Will and Elizabeth lying on the bed with nothing but the blankets to cover themselves.

"Well, well, well. The whelp has grown up a bit I must say. And my dear Lizzie, you look as lovely as I imagined you to be." He teased. Elizabeth pulled the blanket even higher as she narrowed her eyes at Jack.

"What do you want?"

"I need to have a word with William. Can I speak to him, or are you two busy ravaging each other? Oh don't get up from the bed on my behalf. I can wait for you to be done with your business. Or if you would rather I stay here and watch, I wouldn't mind that either." Will went out of the bed in his underwear, grabbed his pair of pants, his shirt and his boots which were lying scattered on the floor and was putting them on while Jack continued to tease them all the while. Elizabeth made a disgusted face at Jack's last comment and threw a pillow angrily at him. The pirate managed to evade it and chuckled as he picked up the pillow from where it fell and handed it to Will.

"I'll be back as soon as I can." Will said with a loving smile to his wife as he threw the pillow back inside and went out of the room. Jack tried to peer past Will through the room again as he spoke to the young blacksmith.

"Yes, back to finish what you've started. So Will, tell me how Lizzie is in bed. Is she as feisty as she looks?" The door would have hit his face if he hadn't stepped back in time. He gave Will an innocent smile while the other glared at him.

"Are we going to talk or are you going to keep asking me personal questions about my wife?" Jack raised his hands up in surrender, still with the innocent smile, before motioning for Will to follow him. The two walked back up to the main deck and towards Jack's cabin in silence. There was no sign of Jones anymore when they went up to Jack's relief. Nonetheless he hurriedly went inside his cabin and closed the door as soon as Will had walked into the room. The young blacksmith watched Jack with a curious interest as the other began pacing back and forth before him. "Jack, what is going on? Has something happened?" He asked worriedly. Jack ignored his question as he looked at him determinedly.

"Will, you knew Marine for almost as long as I did. Out of everyone else aboard the Black Pearl, you would know her best." The other man blinked, unsure of how to reply.

"Yes, perhaps. But you and Carrie know her best out of everyone else."

"I need a second opinion mate, and you're the only one I can count on. But you mustn't speak of this to anyone, not even Elizabeth. Do you promise that?" Will could see the seriousness in Jack and was slightly touched by his full trust in him.

"Of course Jack. What is it?"

"Has...has Marine changed from the last time we met her? Back when we were chasing after the Pearl and after your bony lass that is." The seriousness of the question made Will think on the answer thoroughly. He furrowed his brows as he considered the question.

"Well there is a big change I guess. She's lost more than half of her strength now. She's more fragile and more dependent on us compared to before. And after Carrie's death...you can't blame her for becoming who she is now. She's being strong just by the fact that she's walking about the Pearl and doing all sorts of work. But...she doesn't seem as happy as before."

"Do you think...do you think that she'll still be the same Marine we knew once she merges with her clone?" Will raised an eyebrow at the pirate.

"Marine will be Marine, whatever may happen. I'm sure that the grief won't disappear just like that. It would take time for her to heal, and even more time for her to truly be herself." He couldn't understand why Jack was asking him these questions but he had a vague idea of the reason why. "Perhaps, to heal her broken heart and to bring her back to her old self, one must mend it by forming new relationships with her and giving her a reason to be happy and to go back to the way things were." Jack considered this then nodded as he made a silent decision. Then he bowed before Will.

"I thank you for your wise words dear William. You can get back to your bony lass now. And try not to make too much noise. Lord knows we don't need to hear that on a ship filled with pirates." He turned around and walked away without waiting for the young blacksmith to reply. But he stopped half-way and spun around on his feet to look at Will. "Oh and once you're finished with dear Lizzie, would you tell her to wait for me in your rooms? I have to speak to her later." He turned around and began walking once more, leaving Will standing in Jack's cabin and staring at the other's back in confusion.

* * *

Feeling slightly restless with nothing important to do, Marine had decided to pull her weight and do some of the meager chores on the Black Pearl. She had volunteered to scrub the deck and was on her hands and knees with a bucket of water beside her. The sun felt hot on her skin and made beads of sweat fall down from her face and from her back. Despite the discomfort Marine felt glad that she was able to do something to help and felt useful because she couldn't do anything else and had to risk others' lives for her own benefits. She stopped scrubbing for a few minutes, putting the brush on the ground to stretch her back and look around. It was then that she saw Jack standing not far from her, watching her in silence.

"What is it?" She asked him with one eyebrow raised.

"Just admiring the view." He replied with a large grin. It took Marine a few seconds to realize what Jack meant by his words and narrowed her eyes at him.

"Can't you ever stop thinking of women and any other perverted thoughts you have cooped up in that muddled brain of yours?" She asked rhetorically. Jack shrugged at her and had an amused apologetic expression on his face, though he didn't seem that apologetic.

"I'm Captain Jack Sparrow love, it's in my nature to always think of women. Dressed and undressed. Especially if they have a very attractive back side." With a sigh and a roll of her eyes Marine grabbed the brush and went back to scrubbing as she did her best to ignore the pirate captain. But knowing that Jack was watching her made her feel uncomfortable. She glanced behind her and saw that Jack was still looking at her with a grin. She gave him a warning glare, wanting him to walk away and leave her alone, but he ignored the look she gave him and went on watching her. She gritted her teeth and gave up as she threw the brush into the bucket and stood up. She left the bucket there as she stomped away from the main deck and towards her room.

She could sense the pirate captain going after her. He made no move to hide the sound of his footsteps as they made their way below the deck and into the room she used to share with Carrie; previously with Ana Maria when she had still been part of the Black Pearl's crew. Marine could have told him to get lost or made him leave her. But she wanted him to follow her into her room so they could talk. Deep in her mind she knew that if Jack knew her purpose he would immediately back away. Then again it was possible that this was what Jack had intended all along. When they reached the door to her room and entered, Marine began to have doubts about her plan. Jack closed the door behind him with a resounding click that to the female pirate sounded like her impending doom. She turned around and looked at Jack, who stared at her with a grin.

"Marine love, you didn't have to play coy with me. If you had really wanted to, you could have asked." He said. Ignoring Jack's teasings, Marine took a deep breath and looked at the pirate captain determinedly.

"Jack we need to talk."

"Aye love, we can do that after I ravish you with my mouth." He grinned when he saw Marine's face turn bright red at his remark.

"Stop that! I'm not in the mood for your flirting antics."

"Are you implying that you've enjoyed my flirting with you before and if in the right mood would advance on my said flirting?"

"No! I never said that! Don't put words into my mouth."

"You never said it. But you implied it."

"Jack!" Marine couldn't find any words to say to the infuriating pirate. She was so confused and frustrated at the way Jack behaved around her. Then without thinking she said the first word that came out of her mouth to her horror and to Jack's complete surprise. "Do you really love me or were you lying when you said that?!" It was Jack's turn to be at a loss for words as he stared at Marine.

"What?" He asked dumbly. Marine was still blushing, but because she had asked the question she had wanted to ask Jack since they set out from the island, she thought that she might as well go through it.

"You remembered what happened back at your cabin. You said you loved me. Even if you didn't say that exact phrase, you were implying that you did. Is that true? And don't say you don't know what I'm talking about! I know that you can still remember it." She watched him intently, trying to see and interpret his reaction. But Jack stayed silent and avoided looking at her. "Jack! Tell me please."

"Are you frustrated because you don't know if I do?" He asked. Marine blinked at his reply then narrowed her eyes.

"No."

"Tell me the truth. Then I'll answer your question." Jack's reply was something that Marine didn't expect. She stuttered and for a moment forgot what she was doing and what she was supposed to say. After a second she recovered and she looked at him, trying to see if he was telling the truth.

"How do I know that you'll answer my question truthfully?" She asked. She suddenly felt his hands on her shoulders. He held her firmly, but at the same time gently. When she looked up at him, she felt her whole body melt and flutter at the intensity of his gaze.

"Because we had an accord that we would trust each other no matter what. Remember?" Marine could only nod in reply. "So then tell me. Are you frustrated?" Heart pounding hard in her chest, it took Marine a while before she could answer.

"Yes."

"There now, that wasn't so hard was it? And so to answer your question, the way I fancy wenches and whores in taverns is different. You are an attractive woman and at the same time you have made me do and feel things that I've never felt before. There are things I would never have done were you a different women or if you had been Lizzie or Ana Maria even. You are also the first person I would trust my whole life to; not even William or Gibbs have that pleasure. This is something that has never happened to me before and I have not a name for this feeling I have. Therefore if I have no name for my feelings then I cannot say that I love you because I know not of the true meaning of love and am still trying to understand it, which I'm sure my father would then say that I'm a complete idiot because yes I have annoyingly hopelessly fallen for you and I would in turn deny it for denial is a step in understanding this feeling." Marine stared at him throughout his whole speech.

"A yes or no could have sufficed you know. I think you just fried my brains out."

"I hope that's a good thing."

"It's not. And I still don't know your answer." The pirate captain stepped forward and to Marine's shock, pressed his lips to hers in a surprisingly chaste kiss. She hardly had time to react as Jack pulled away, stepped back towards the door and held it while grinning at her.

"Worry not my dear maiden, you'll know the answer eventually." He closed the door, leaving a dumbfounded Marine standing in the room, and locked the door with a click. He took the key out of the lock and spun it around in his finger as he whistled his way towards where Will and Elizabeth's rooms were. He opened the door and found the blond haired woman sitting on the bed fully dressed. "Ah Lizzie, very good. I shall leave this in your capable hands. Make sure that she doesn't get out until the battle is over." Elizabeth almost didn't catch the key that Jack tossed at her and couldn't say anything else as Jack closed the door, the sound of his boots thudding outside until he had gone back up to the main deck.


	43. Fighting for a Cause

**AN:** I'm sorry for the really really long delay. I've been so busy with projects at school that I barely have any time to do the things I want. So without further ado, here's the next chapter.

* * *

_**"I deeply apologize for what I am about to do." - James Norrington**_

**Chapter 43 - Fighting for a Cause**

When Jack came up from below deck he saw a number of his men as well as Will and the others staring beyond the horizon. He turned his gaze towards that direction as well and saw the same thing they did. A royal navy ship slowly making its way towards them. Gibbs, at Jack's open, demanding hand, gave him the looking glass and watched as the pirate captain looked through it. He saw several royal navy guards standing by the railings weilding their rifles and swords. Among them stood the new Commodore as well as Marine's clone. Seeing the last two people made him grimace with distaste.

"They will be within our reach in a few more minutes captain. What are your orders?" The first mate asked. Jack passed the looking glass back to him as he turned his gaze to the rest of the people who were there.

"Tell the men to prepare their swords and the ready the cannons. We attack at my signal. Tell Tia and Cornelius to make their way to Marine's room, where Elizabeth is and help her protect Marine." As Jack watched Gibbs rush off to order the rest of his crew, Norrington came up to stand beside the pirate captain.

"Sparrow, I have an idea that shall interest you greatly."

"Will it guarantee our victory?"

"No. But I have no doubt that it shall help us."

"Well then, what is it?" Before Jack could react, Norrington had smashed the pirate captain's head with his pistol before catching him in his arms. Everyone else stopped what they were doing and stared at Norrington incredulously.

What the-?!" Jones cried.

"Norrington what on earth do you think you're doing?!" Will asked incredulously. All of Jack's men narrowed their gazes at the former Commodore as they automatically took out their weapons and aimed it at him. Norrington wasn't worried about those as he calmly placed Jack on the ground and turned to face the young blacksmith.

"I have a plan that might turn the battle to our advantage. But we have to pretend that I've caught Jack Sparrow and his crew." Will widened his eyes in surprise.

"What?! No, that's too risky! You can't fool all those Royal Navy into thinking that you captured Jack Sparrow and his men alone."

"And that is why we will convince them that I didn't catch Sparrow alone. We'll say that I've convinced a number of these pirates to assist me in the capture of Jack Sparrow in return for pardon for their crimes. We are wasting time standing here and arguing about this! We have to move now if we want the Royal Navy to fall for our charade. Are you going to help me or not?" Norrington asked impatiently. Will's lips straightened into a thin line and after a full minute he sighed in resignment.

"All right. I'll help you."

"Good. Then I'm going to need you to bring me a coil of rope to tie around Sparrow." Will glanced at Gibbs and gave an apologetic smile before rushing off to do as Norrington ordered. Then the former Commodore spoke to the first mate. "Can you pick a number of your men to act as the mutineers? And have the rest gather around on the main deck with their weapons hidden in their clothes. Tell them what we're planning and tell them to act as naturally as they could. Then tell them to raise the white flag if you have one. We have to show them that we have no intentions of attacking." Gibbs set off to do as he was told as well, though he was reluctant to do so. Immediately everyone on the ship began to move about energetically.

"You should set a number of men to start a surprise attack on the other ship." Norrington turned towards the new voice and saw Teague making his way towards him. "Once they have attacked, the guards will be confused and startled and we would have the upper advantage in the fight." Norrington considered this for a minute then nodded.

"I'll let you pick the men and lead them to what they're supposed to do." At hearing this Teague gave one of his most heartiest laughs.

"I might not be that old, but I'm not that young either lad! Have someone who's younger and much stronger than I am to do those things. You'll need someone who's nimble and sneaky enough to reach the other ship without notice." As he spoke he looked to his right side with a knowing smile on his face. Norrington turned his head in the same direction and saw the man Teague was referring to. A grimace appeared on his face but he couldn't help but agree that it was their best choice at the moment.

"Jones! Come over here!" He called. The thief at hearing his name looked at them and walked towards them in confusion.

"What is it?"

"We need you to lead a group of men to the other ship and attack them by surprise. Your attack will be the signal for the rest of us to follow." Norrington explained. Jones took a while before he fully understood what was being asked of him. Once he did he widened his eyes and stared at Norrington as he pointed to himself incredulously.

"What?! Why me??" He cried.

"Because your skills as a thief will prove useful in your infiltration." Norrington explained. "You will be able to make your way into their ship without alerting them of your presence." Jones wasn't so sure how to react to Norrington's words. He didn't know whether he should be touched by the other's compliments or scared that he actually acknowledged his profession and wanted him to use it.

"But...but..."

"Norrington, their ship is getting closer!" Will cried. "Hurry." The former Commodore nodded to Will before turning his attention back to Jones.

"Unfortunately, I'm not giving you a choice on the matter." And with those final words he moved past Jones towards where the young blacksmith had successfully tied Jack Sparrow. Teague made to follow the former Commodore, but not before giving Jones a consoling pat on the back and an encouraging smile. The thief opened and closed his mouth repeatedly like a gaping fish for a few seconds, still hardly believing that Norrington assigned a dangerous and insane task to him, before giving a heavy, defeated sigh.

* * *

"Sir! Sir! Come quickly!" The new Commodore turned his gaze to one of his guards and looked at the direction that the other man was pointing to. He noticed that it was the direction where the Black Pearl was and upon looking closer, he saw that the ship was sailing with a white flag.

"Give me a looking glass." He demanded. Once he got one he peered through it at the Black Pearl and saw that there was some strange commotion going on at the main deck. He wasn't sure what it was but something told him that he had to keep his guard up for whatever it was they were going to face. After a few minutes he handed back the looking glass at his guard. "Tell all our men to stay on their guard. This could be a trap set up by the pirates." He said. The soldier saluted and ran off to do as the Commodore ordered.

In a few more minutes both the Black Pearl and the Royal Navy ship floated meters apart. The new Commodore stood behind the railings with a group of his men standing behind him with their swords and rifles ready. As both ships came side by side the Royal Guards found themselves staring at a very peculiar sight. There was Jack Sparrow, unconscious and tied up in ropes lying beside James Norrington. They had expected to find the pirates all rearing to fight but what they found instead was a form of surrender.

"What is the meaning of this?" The new Commodore asked. Norrington stepped forward then swerved his hand to the side to present everything on the deck. As planned, some of the crew members were grouped together and were being watched by other crew members like prisoners.

"I present to you a gift in the form of the infamous and filthy pirate named Captain Jack Sparrow as well as the fastest ship on the Caribbean, The Black Pearl. I hope that you'll consider this as an act of my untainted loyalty to His Majesty." Norrington said. Everyone on the other side of the ship fell in silence as they realized that they wouldn't have to go through too much trouble to get the pirate capitain. They felt relieved and excited, all except the Commodore as well as Marine's clone who had taken a step forward and pointed an accusing finger at Norrington.

"You're a filthy liar! You're just as bad as that pirate. Don't listen to him Commodore, he's just trying to trick you so they can kill us all without any problems." She said.

"Oh am I?" Norrington said as he pointed a finger at the clone. "But isn't all this part of your plan Sharpshooter Marine? You told us to pretend to surrender to the Commodore so we can attack him when they've put their guard down." He accused. "I only followed because I was being threatened to do so." The Commodore's eyes widened as he spun around to face the clone.

"What?" Marine's clone realized what the other was trying to do and narrowed her eyes at him while glancing at the Commodore pleadingly.

"No! He's lying! He's just saying it to trick you!"

"Who's trying to trick who?" Norrington spat back. "Can't you see before your own eyes? She is Sharpshooter Marine, a pirate and a scoundrel! Would you truly believe someone like her over a former Commodore, unjustly accused because he has been captured by these pirates and forced to fight for them?"

"James Norrington was accused of being a pirate because he sided with them! You can't believe them!" The new Commodore turned his gaze to Marine's clone coldly.

"And why should I believe you instead of him?" He asked. That threw Marine's clone off as she stared at him in surprise. Then her eyes hardened as she turned her gaze to Norrington.

"All right, why don't we prove ourselves then?" Without warning Marine's clone took out the Commodore's gun and aimed at one of the pirates kneeling on the ground. With a loud bang one of the pirates fell dead to the ground. Everyone stared incredulously, stunned at the clone's actions. Norrington gritted his teeth and clenched his hands into fists. Even the Commodore seemed shocked and horrified by what Marine's clone did.

"What have you done?"

"I killed him. He was nothing but a lowly pirate isn't he? His death, whether it's here or it's at the hangman's noose, doesn't matter. I proved that I am not one of them, I have been wronged by pirates and so I shall get my revenge by killing each and every one of them." She replied. Then she turned her gaze to Norrington with a challenging smile. "And how about you Norrington? Are you loyal enough to His Majesty to kill one of these pirates? Or have you grown soft and actually care for these worthless creatures?"

"They have been captured and unarmed. I am not so dishonorable as to shoot a man who has already surrendered." He calmly replied. In the inside he was starting to grow worried. Marine's clone could sense more than see that as well and smiled even wider.

"If your Commodore so commands it, then you must do it." She turned her gaze to the other man expectantly. "Isn't that so Commodore?"

"Very well. In order to prove that you are truly a man of His Majesty's, I shall allow you to kill one of Jack Sparrow's men." Everyone on the Black Pearl stiffened at that. They weren't sure if this was still part of Norrington's plan, and if he would actually kill one of them. Some wanted to protest, but a warning look from Gibbs silenced them all. The first mate turned his gaze back at Norrington apprehensively. Everything went down to the former Commodore's decision on this matter. Norrington said nothing as he took out his pistol from his belt. By this time Jack was coming back from unconsciousness and was groaning with pain from being hit on the head earlier. He looked around him in confusion then widened his eyes when he realized that he was tied up in ropes.

"What's the meaning of this? What the bloody hell is going on?!" He cried.

"Oh, so you're finally awake Jack Sparrow." The Commodore spoke. "It seems you have woken up at the right moment to witness your defeat under the Royal Navy." Jack was still very confused with what was happening but seeing Norrington standing beside him, and half of his crew members under the mercy of the other half, he could make a guess of what had happened. He narrowed his eyes up at Norrington and gritted his teeth.

"Norrington..." He growled. "I should have known." The former Commodore said nothing in return. He couldn't say anything now to try and tell Jack of his plan or the Royal Navy would become suspicious. He only hoped that the pirate captain wouldn't do anything reckless or outrageous to ruin his plan of saving them all. He turned his gaze towards the group of apprehended pirates and raised his pistol. Each pirate flinched and tried to avoid being Norrington's target.

"I deeply apologize for what I am about to do." He said.

"What are you apologizing for? These men are nothing but pirates. You have nothing to apologize for." The Commodore stated. Without warning Norrington turned around, swinging his pistol and aiming at the Commodore himself before firing a shot. Everyone stared at the other man who dumbly looked down at his shirt which began to turn red. He lifted his head up once more at the former Commodore in shock and uncomprehension, and his face remained that way as he fell on his knees then crashed flat on the ground.

"It's not to them I was apologizing to." Norrington muttered. All the guards stood there in complete and utter shock. Marine's clone gritted her teeth as she turned her gaze to the rest of the men aboard the Royal Navy Ship. They were all in such a state of shock that if someone would shoot them all down they might not even be aware of it.

"What are you all staring at him for?! He just killed the Commodore! Attack him!!" She cried angrily. And as one they all woke up from their stupor and raised their rifles and swords, shouting battle cries as they charged onto the Black Pearl's main deck. Those who weren't tied up charged in retaliation while some untied the rest of the crew. Norrington himself kneeled down before Jack and began untying him while looking around from time to time to make sure that no one was going to attack them. Jack said nothing about Norrington's actions. He had understood the moment Norrington shot the gun at the Commodore.

"The next time you're going to plan something ridiculous like this, I would prefer if you told your captain about it first." Jack said. "After all, I am the master of planning mad and ridiculous plans."

"My apologies captain, the next time we are at the brink of battle, I shall let you know of mine and spend the remaining free minutes we have arguing over whether we should go through with it or not." He replied with a sarcastic tone.

"Of course," Jack said with an obvious tone. "Obviously you're not good enough to think up of a well-thought out plan." Just as he said his last words there was a sudden explosion that came from the other ship. Royal Navy guards screamed and flew back as several canon balls shot into the air through the deck below. Norrington then looked smugly at Jack.

"On the contrary, every single step in my plan has been accomplished smoothly." No need to tell Jack that the canon balls were supposed to be the signal to attack. Jack grumbled as the rope finally got loose and he threw it to the side as he stood up, unsheating his sword.

"All right men! Luck is on our side! Let's show these men why the Black Pearl should be feared!" A chorus of "Aye's" rang through the deck before the sound of clashing swords and gunshots came back. Norrington bit back a sigh as he took out his own weapons and joined in on the fight.

* * *

"There. That ought to be enough." Jones muttered as he fired the last canon ball above him on the main deck of the Royal Navy Ship. "Though they were supposed to wait for this before they attacked." He turned his gaze to the other pirates who were with him and nodded. "Time to head up and assist the crew." The pirates were all eager to fight and so cheered and gave battle cries as they ran up the stairs. Jones wasn't as eager as they were though and took his lovely time getting up. He passed several guards and pirates fighting with each other on the deck of the Royal Navy ship while doing his best to stay unnoticed. He moved towards the railings and after catching sight of a rope that had been part of the sails, swung over to the Black Pearl. More guards and pirates were fighting with each other and he saw one of the men on their side fall down as a sword went through him. The guard turned his gaze to Jones and cried as he made to attack. Jones expertly dodged him and kicked him off the railing into the water.

He looked around him and knew that he had no place where he could hide and keep from getting involved with the fighting. There was no doubt that everyone would be jumping ship since he just destroyed one of them. The Black Pearl will soon be filled to the brim with fighting pirates and guards and it'll be so crowded that hardly anyone would be able to move about freely. If he was going to fight either way, he thought that he could choose to fight as little as possible. He decided that staying with Elizabeth, Tia and Cornelius to protect Marine would be the best course. After all, the Royal Navy guards as well as Marine's clone would have to go through Jack's crew, Will, Teague, and the rest of the pirates before getting to them. With this thought in mind he made for below deck as quickly as possible, dodging enemies and fights as he did. The deck of the Black Pearl was chaotic with men fighting against each other all over. There were already a number of dead bodies lying on the ground and it wouldn't take too long before the winner of the battle would be determined. Judging from the clothes on the dead bodies that littered the deck Jones could see that Jack's was the winning side.

As he came down the stairs he could still hear the sound of clashing swords and saw Elizabeth fighting one of the guards. He stepped behind them and taking out his knife stabbed the unsuspecting enemy behind the back. He pulled it out while looking at Elizabeth and the others with a grin.

"Your dashing thief has come to your aid."

"Jones! What is going on out there? We heard the sound of canons outside." Elizabeth asked.

"It was all part of the plan." Jones explained. "Thanks to yours truly, the Royal Navy is without a ship and without any means to destroy ours." Before any of them could say anything further, there was the sound of someone pounding loudly at the door from within the room. The thief jumped in surprirse and had almost taken out his knife but he relaxed then chuckled when he remembered who it was inside.

"She's not giving up is she?"

"Of course she isn't." Elizabeth replied with a slight hint of amusement. "She's quite angry at Jack for trapping her like this."

"Angry?! You don't know the half of it! Once I get my hands on him I'll stranggle him and give him a very slow and painful death." Jones whistled.

"Scary. I'm glad I'm not Jack Sparrow right now."

"Jack's doing this for her own good and I'm sure that once all this is over she'll forgive Jack for his acts of concern over her." Cornelius said. The pounding on the door began again followed by Marine's voice.

"Come on guys!! You can't keep me here forever! Let me out and I promise I won't run away. It's not like I have anywhere else to go. And besides, if those pirates come here and find me I won't be able to run away or dodge them since you've trapped me in this room."

"She has a good point." Jones noted. "Though it's the Royal Navy who's here, not pirates." He added to the female pirate. Elizabeth was also beginning to see reason in Marine's words but Cornelius frowned at the two of them.

"I'm sure we can manage fine on our own. Jack and the others above are fighting hard above the deck after all." He looked for support from the witch doctor but Tia simply smiled and said nothing. She had no plans of getting into their arguement.

"But they can't keep every single person from coming down here." Marine pointed out from within the room. "Eventually, some of them will slip past and while those guys keep you busy, any other guard could just waltz in here, grab me from this room where I have no chance of escaping, dodging or even fighting for that matter, and bring me to my clone. Worse, it could be my clone herself who comes down here and gets at me before anyone can try to fight back." Cornelius continued to frown, but even he seemed to see the argument Marine was raising. As if proving a point, the group heard footsteps coming down the stairs. Everyone immediately turned their gazes ahead with their weapons in hand, ready to fight. Everyone except for Tia who decided to take action and unlocked the door Marine was locked in.

When Marine came out, it was to find the group clashing swords with a couple of guards who, as Marine predicted, slipped past Jack and the others above. She looked around for any weapon but found none to her frustration. She watched as Elizabeth thrust her sword through one guard and pushed him aside. Dead guard means weapons lying unused. Marine eagerly made her way towards the guard and grabbed hold of the swords he dropped when she heard the sound of an anguished cry and looked up with alarm and worry. Jones stood with a sword through his gut while the grinning malevolent face of Marine stared at him. He began to tremble and grasped the other woman's shoulders as if asking for help or deliverance.

"You should have left them when you had the chance." She said, before pulling out the weapon and kicking him to the side. Jones wordlessly crashed against the wall and lay on the ground unmoving. Marine and the others stared in disbelief and would have made their way to the thief to check on him but Marine's clone stood blocking their way. She was still grinning and swung her sword in a flourish before regarding each person confidently.

"So, which one of you wants to join him first?" Marine gritted her teeth as she pushed Elizabeth and the others to the side. She and her clone stood facing each other with a clear path between them. Immediately the tension surrounding them increased until it was so thick that one could probably slice it with a knife. Neither of them moved, merely stared at the other with intensity, gripping the sword they held in their hand tightly until their knuckles turned white. The sounds of fighting, screaming, shouting from above the deck was nothing but muffled sounds to them. Even Elizabeth and the others, worried as they were about their pirate friend, hesitated to step in front and break the gaze both Marine held with the other.

"I've had enough of you. You've done nothing but make my life miserable ever since you came into existence." She said. Marine's clone didn't seem angry at her comment. In fact, she sounded amused.

"The feeling's mutual. So here we are, facing each other off yet again. Haven't you gotten tired of losing to me every time we do this? Why don't you just make it easier for everyone and give up?"

"No matter how many times you ask me that, I won't let you have that satisfaction. I still have to make you pay for everything you've done."

"Well then, let's stop wasting time and get on with it." With that warning Marine's clone charged with her sword pulled back. Marine dodged the thrust that came and lifted her hands up to the side of her face as her clone gave a hard roundhouse kick to her head. She stumbled to the side from the force and lifted her sword up just as the clone threw hers down at Marine. She retaliated by lifting her foot and kicking the clone away but her opponent had seen the move and jumped back before she could make a hit. Elizabeth and the others were at a complete loss as to what to do. They wanted to help Marine but they weren't sure how to do that. The young blond haired woman tried to take a step within their range with her sword held at ready when Marine's clear and sharp tone cut through her movements.

"Stay back! I can do this on my own." Marine shouted. Her clone was smiling as she easily blocked a swing from Marine's sword.

"Yes, and besides, you guys have more pressing problems to deal with first." As if on cue, Elizabeth and the others saw a couple of pirates and guards coming down below the deck in battle. The pirates were losing, and Cornelius decided to assist them as he charged into the battle with his sword raised. Other pirates and guards were coming down; it looked like the Royal Navy Ship wasn't holding anyone anymore and had caused the Black Pearl to become too crowded to be able to keep the fight only above the deck. When the young blond haired woman turned her gaze back to where Marine and her clone were fighting she saw that they had disappeared further into the lower deck.

"Go and keep Marine safe! We'll hold the fort here." Cornelius told her. Turning her gaze to Tia she saw the dark skinned woman nod in agreement. Elizabeth saw that they really didn't have much choice in the matter. Marine's safety was first and foremost in everyone's minds. If Marine loses, then everything they've done would be for nothing. She turned around and ran as quickly as she could after the other two women.

_Please Marine, hold on and be safe._

* * *

Marine felt overwhelmed by her clone's continuous and forceful attacks. While she struggled to dodge and keep up, her clone was totally calm and relaxed. To Marine it didn't even seem like her opponent was breaking a sweat. She gritted her teeth as her clone charged once more. She lifted her sword to block hers, locking the two in a stance. Marine's clone pushed her head closer to hers and smiled mockingly while the two of them pushed their swords against each other.

"Aww is the widdle baby tired already? I'm just getting started!" Marine said nothing as she struggled not to be thrown back. She was becoming pissed at her clone's overconfidence. Then she reminded herself that she was fighting a version of herself, a version who was strong, cunning and always a step ahead of her enemies.

_T__his must be how my enemies feel when fighting with me before..._

Marine acknowledged her counterpart's strength, but she refused to submit to it. With a grunt she took a step back, using her clone's force against her, and swung her sword to the side to throw the other sword away. It clattered to the ground and slid a few meters away from them. Marine then raised her sword at her clone and found herself staring back at a pistol.

"Nice try, but it won't work." She motioned for Marine to drop her sword but the other woman refused to do it. "Come now, don't be so stubborn and drop it. It's no use anyway."

"As long as I'm standing, I'm not giving up."

"Well let's remedy that." Marine wasn't prepared for what happened next. It took her body a few seconds before she felt the burning, searing pain on her leg. She gave a cry and immediately dropped to the ground, dropping her sword as well as she held on the sides of her leg. Her clone continued to stand before her, spinning her pistol casually.

"Merging with me isn't really so bad is it? You'll still get to be there, and it's not like I'm going to ruin your life. We'll still be pirates or we can go back to our own world. I'm even willing to be with Jack Sparrow if that's what you really want. Take Carrie for example, even though she's merged with her other self it wouldn't really matter because they're one and the same." At the name of her best friend Marine twitched. The wounds were still fresh and painful and remembering what happened wasn't a nice feeling. She gripped her leg tightly as she spoke in a cold and angry voice.

"Carrie isn't having a hard time anymore because she's dead." Her clone was thrown off by that comment. She stared at Marine in disbelief at first, then when she saw that Marine wasn't lying or fooling around she hardened her eyes and spoke in a similar tone as the other.

"What happened?"

"Like you'd care about what happened. All you care about is getting to me isn't it?"

"She was my best friend too!" The other woman was startled at this sudden display of anger, confusion and worry from her clone counterpart. She looked up at the other's eyes and saw that clone or not she cared for Carrie too. This only made her angry.

"What a friend you've been! It's all your fault that she's dead." Marine screamed angrily. "If you stopped them from merging together...if it wasn't for you she would still be standing here!" She was about to say more when her clone suddenly stepped forward and pulled her up by the front of her shirt. Marine gave a cry as she felt pain shooting through her whole leg. She was being held up by her clone; if she let go she would definitely drop back to the ground. She stared into the other's eyes and saw them filled with cold anger.

"Tell me what happened!"

"Maurice...he...he killed her just when Carrie was about to return to the other world..." Marine couldn't stop the tears from falling down her eyes. "He shot her just as she fell into the portal. None of us could grab her to save her in time. She's...she's gone. And you! You allowed her to die! Because you weren't paying attention to Maurice he escaped and hid in the Black Pearl where he waited to make his move." She gasped and grunted as she fell back to the ground. Her clone had released her hold and was staring at her angrily.

"You're lying!"

"Why the hell would I like about something like that?!" Marine screamed. "What point would I have for telling you something like that?! See for yourself! Do you see her anywhere on this fucking boat? Do you?" Her clone fell silent as she gazed down at the other woman. Then she murmured something that Marine couldn't hear. It was only when she repeated it a second time that Marine realized what she wanted.

"Where is he...?" Marine instantly knew what her counterpart was going to do. She clenched her hands into tight fists as she stared up at her with wide eyes. "Where is he?!" There was a very heated debate going on within her mind. She knew that killing Maurice, as much as she wanted to do it, wasn't going to solve anything. She had managed to convince herself that it was wrong, and that Maurice would get what he deserved eventually. And here was someone who was ready to punish him for his crimes. Marine wondered if she should tell her clone where he is and allow her to kill him. She wouldn't be the one killing him after all. The temptation was too great. Before she could answer though her clone was already on her way deeper into the corridors, making her way to the prison cells where she figured Maurice would be held in.

And there she saw him, sitting down crunched up like some pathetic little rat. She clenched her jaw tightly, the hand that still held the pistol was trembling with anger. She began reloading her pistol as she walked up towards the cell and smiled an evil, maniacal smile at the prisoner.

"Hello Maurice. How are you doing?" The prisoner was startled by the voice and turned his gaze towards the female pirate. His eyes lit up with recognition and he scrambled on his four limbs towards the bars, holding onto them and looknig at the other with hope.

"Marine! You're the other one aren't you? Get me out of here please!"

"You betrayed me. And you escaped from me only to hide here."

"I did it to save myself. You have to understand that I never intended to betray you. Jack was only implying it, putting it into your head so he could make us fight against each other."

"I understand..." The relief that appeared in Maurice's face was short-lived as he found himself facing the barrel of Marine's pistol. "What I don't understand is how you can kill my best friend."

"We made a deal with each other! She was going to give me the coin and we were supposed to go back to the other world together. But she betrayed me and planned on leaving on her own. She betrayed me!"

"I don't care." Marine's clone was about to pull the trigger when she suddenly froze and swung her arm around where Marine had been standing with her hand stretched out in an attempt to touch the other. The gun smashed against her cheek and sent her to the ground with a thud. Marine's cheek throbbed with pain as she pressed against it with her hand. Then she tensed as she felt a presence behind her. Looking over her shoulder, she saw her clone glaring down at her.

"What do you think you're doing? I'm going to kill the man who killed our best friend! Don't tell me you want to save this piece of shit!"

"I may be saving him from you...but he's not entirely saved." Marine spoke, wincing a little as she felt a twitch of pain in her cheek. But her resolve grew as she forced herself to stand up, ignoring the other pain coming from her wounded leg. It was nothing compared to how she would feel if she let her clone kill Maurice. She looked at her own face and narrowed her eyes while gripping the Aztec coin in one hand and her sword in the other. "I won't let you kill him!"


	44. Concluding Battle

**AN: **Ahh I can't believe that I'm nearing the end! I still have one more chapter to go so you guys still have at least a few more reading material. I hope you forgive me for the long delays during the last few chapters. Studying is my priority. But as you can see, I keep my promise. I'm not forgetting my story. Here's the next chapter. Enjoy, and read and review please!

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_**"It's finally over...isn't it?" - Jones Westley**_

**Chapter 44 - Concluding Battle**

For the first time in his life, Jack Sparrow hated being himself. Whenever he took down one guard, another would follow. They were all intent in trying to defeat and capture the infamous Captain Jack Sparrow. He wouldn't have minded all the fighting but at the moment he had other important things to worry about. He made several attempts at going down below deck to check on Elizabeth and the others but the guards wouldn't let him pass. Just as his sword went through one man and he pushed him away, another began to come at him. He looked around him to see how everyone else was doing and saw Will, Teague, and Norrington as busy as he was. He fought his way over towards Will and stood back to back with the young blacksmith.

"Jack...how are you doing?" Will asked. Jack turned his gaze to him and narrowed his eyes.

"Do you have to ask?" Anyone with ears could hear the dripping sarcasm in Jack's tone. Will didn't have a reply for that and decided to just stay quiet and keep fighting. There was still a considerable amount of guards on the main deck but the pirates were managing well enough. But as if to make things worse, the large snake appeared from the surface of the water, looming over the ship with its eyes staring hungrily and menacingly at the tiny men. Jack and Will stopped fighting and watched as it swung its tail horizontally, tossing both pirates and guards off the deck and into the water as well as breaking a few parts of the railings. Jack groaned before he stared murderously at the creature then at his men; those who were still standing.

"Get the cannons and fire at the bloody thing before he destroys the ship!!" Men began running furiously while some continued fighting the guards. None of them went near the snake that had dived down and grabbed a pirate and a guard who were fighting. With agonized screams the snake swallowed the two men whole, the lumps sliding down from the snake's throat and through the length of his belly. Both Jack and Will grimaced at the sight then turned to look at the other.

"How are we going to deal with that?" Will asked.

"Why don't we go and ask Norry for some another one of his ridiculously mad plan?" Jack asked, raising his voice so that the former Commodore, who was busy parrying against a guard, could hear it. Norrington glared at Jack as he glanced to his side and pushed his opponent back thus giving him time to reply.

"As of the moment I am too busy trying to save my own life to think of something. Why don't you do it since you're so much more capable of it than I am?"

"I have complete faith that every single step in your plan will be accomplished smoothly."

"But you are the master of planning ridiculously mad plans. You do it."

"No. As Captain I order you to think of something." The two men narrowed their eyes at each other, refusing to be the first to back down. It wasn't until Will pressed a firm hand on their shoulders and pushed them slightly apart that they broke their contact.

"Jack! Norrington! This isn't the time to fight with each other!"

"Right of course. It's time for you to step up and face the snake man to man!" Jack said, turning his gaze back to the former Commodore.

"That creature is by no means a man!"

"Jack!" Will shouted impatiently, stopping the pirate before he could open his mouth to retort. He rolled his eyes at Will before giving in to the young blacksmith's plead and looked up at the snake apprehensively. For a minute he just stood there staring at the large creature that was wreaking havoc, with Will and Norrington glancing at him from time to time as they fought off guards. Finally Norrington gave a frustrated sigh and glared at Jack.

"Are you expecting the snake to simply drop dead from your gaze Sparrow?" Jack shot the former Commodore a glare before looking at his men who were firing cannons at the snake. They all looked terrified and cowered before the length and size of the creature. After heaving a heavy sigh he pushed his way through fighting men towards the weapons and jumped with fright as the snake lifted its tail and smacked the cannon aside like it was merely a fly or a feather. The large weapon flew up high into the air, together with a man who had been standing beside it, before falling into the sea a few yards away from the ship. When the other men standing by the other cannons saw that they immediately dropped everything and began to run away as quickly as they could. Even Jack himself turned around and began running and swaggering back to where Will and Norrington were.

Halfway towards them he froze and turned around to make his way towards his cabin. Will and Norrington stared in disbelief, with their mouths gaping open, as Jack ignored all the commotion and chaos occurring around him and slammed the door behind him shut. The second man narrowed his eyes and muttered curses and other insults under his breath a few seconds later. He was about to make his way towards Jack's cabin, probably to give the pirate captain a reproach when Jack himself reappeared from the door. The two men saw him striding towards the snake determinedly, his arms swinging powerfully by his sides. Will could make out something in both of the pirate's hands; several long red sticks in one and a small box in the other. He widened his eyes when he realized that what Jack held were dynamites and a box of matches. Then they widened even more when he saw that Jack was going nearer and nearer the snake.

"Oh good lord please don't tell me that he's planning to do what I think he's doing..." Norrington said as he stared at Jack, unsure how to react to his antics.

"Well you did agree that he is the master of planning ridiculously mad plans. This is by far the worst and most insane plan he has concocted." Will replied.

"And hopefully his last." Norrington added in a soft mutter as they watched Jack make his way towards the beast. He stopped to stand several meters before it, trying to struggle with the things he was carrying while he lit up a match and hovered it at the wick of one of the dynamites. Once he was finished preparing he looked up at the creature and opened his mouth.

"Oi you bloody beast!" He shouted. There was no telling whether the snake heard Jack or not, but it seemed to sense his presence and turned its venomous gaze at the pirate captain. Jack lit all the dynamites he held in his hand and waved them high above his head. "I've got something that you might enjoy! Well? What are you waiting for?" It only stared at Jack and flicked its tongue with a hiss as response. Jack moved closer with the dangerous explosives, the wick getting shorter and shorter as the fire ate it away at an alarming speed, and he continued to goad the creature, trying to make it angry enough to open its mouth. When the wick was halfway burnt he dropped the box of matches to the floor and pulled out his pistol, aiming it at the snake. He fired and it hit the snake, causing it to grow angry and finally open its mouth to retaliate.

It was then that Jack threw the dynamites in his hand with as much strength as he could. Then he pivoted around on his right leg with a quick jerk and began to run just as the dynamites exploded with a loud bang in the snake's mouth. Black smoke began to come out of its mouth, and a tooth went flying up into the air to fall onto the Black Pearl's deck, a few meters from where Jack had been running towards. Jack stopped when he saw the thing lodge itself onto the wooden deck and stared at it dumbly. Then remembering his deal with Tia he grinned and plucked the giant fang out, using his belt sash to wrap around the item before making his way back to where Will and Norrington were. Once he reached them and was standing in front of them, he tossed the wrapped item to Norrington with a smug grin on his face.

"And that, gentlemen, is how Captain Jack Sparrow plans ridiculously mad plans."

* * *

Marine didn't know how long they had been going at it. It seemed like she and her clone had been fighting each other for hours. She was half-surprised that there were still sounds of fighting from above the deck and that no one was coming to check on her or to make sure that they were still alive. They had actually just been fighting for more than 20 minutes but Marine was breathing heavily and struggled to keep up with the pace of her own clone. Considering her state she was actually surprised and relieved that she had managed to hold out long, whether it was for 5 minutes or one hour. Maurice watched from where he was being held, obviously cheering for the Marine who was trying to save his life. After another round of parrying and blocking, Marine's clone took a step back, looking at her other self from top to bottom while gritting her teeth and trying to hold in her frustrations.

"Why won't you just give up damn it?!" She cried angrily. Marine smirked as she felt her chest heaving up and down for some reason she couldn't help but find this whole situation amusing.

"You of all people should know why." She replied in between breaths. "We're from the same cut aren't we? You and I are one and the same, so you ought to know what I'm thinking of." Her clone frowned as she furrowed her brows and hummed.

"Well then, since neither of us have any intentions of giving up the fight continues." The clone raised her sword and was preparing to attack again, taking steps towards Marine while she took steps back apprehensively. As she moved back her head grew dizzy and she had to place a hand against the wall for support. She knew that her clone was going to win if they kept up the fight. No doubt the other contained far more stamina than she did. But she had to win if she wanted her side of the personality to be the dominant one. Steel clashed against steel as Marine's clone swung her sword and her opponent blocked it. She then made a roundhouse kick that Marine dodged by ducking. Marine gave a thrust but her clone blocked the sword and took a step back, only to step forward and slash at Marine. The other rolled to the side as the blade hit the solid ground with a clang.

"You have no chance against her!" Maurice cried as he watched Marine slowly and steadily get back on her feet. "Run and go for help while you still have the strength to stand!"

"If you don't shut up I'm going to deal with you first." Her clone growled with irritation. Marine narrowed her eyes at the older man and felt her arm twitch with the temptation to put a sword through him herself. She knew of course that she didn't have a chance against her clone, but to hear it from the other man pissed her off. She chose to ignore him just as her clone's sword came thrusting at her and made a small cut on her arm as she dodged to the side. If she had moved a second later the sword might have gone through her whole arm. At that moment there was the sound of an explosion from above that made the ship tremble slightly. All three looked above them in surprise. Then Marine's clone looked back at Marine with a smirk.

"I see they're still having troubles with my partner in crime. Fortunately for them I haven't given the snake the order to destroy this ship." Marine narrowed her eyes and gritted her teeth but said nothing to the other woman.

Focus on your clone. She thought. Don't be swayed by anything else she says or does.

"Who's to say that that explosion didn't mean that it's over now? That your snake's kaput and it's all over for you?"

"It doesn't matter. Because as long as you're standing here with me, with no one else helping you, it's not over yet." Marine knew that the other had a point. Everything else was pointless as long as she got to her. She was the final battle that determined the course of the war; whether the victory was hers or for her other self. She took another deep breath, thankful that she's recovered enough to be able to fight again, and resumed their swordplay. This time she was the first one to move as she charged forward and swung her sword at the other. Her clone reacted instantly, swinging her weapon back and blocking the blow that would have killed. They danced with their weapons, moving around in a circle despite the fact that the dungeons wasn't the most spacious of places to fight in.

Then Marine lost her footing and fell back just as Marine's sword swung at her again. The sword missed her but the person who held the sword was quick as she placed a knee on her chest and pinned her down on the ground with a loud thud. She gasped in pain as the breath was taken away from her. The female pirate stared up at her clone as she moved her head lower and looked at her with a triumphant grin on her face. They both knew very well that their current position meant, even though Marine refused to accept it. She struggled and tried to push the other from her, but the knee was too heavy and it made breathing a struggle as well. Her eyes glanced to the side, at where her sword lay, and her hand tried to reached out to it. Her fingers danced as they inched closer and closer to the weapon without actually touching it. To her dismay another hand reached out to get it and her eyes followed the sword and back at her own clone as she held it casually in her hands.

"I would like it if you were conscious when we do this, I mean this would be a whole lot better if you were willing. But we both know how this is going to end right?" Her hand, the one that gripped the coin tightened its hold. She was about to move it, punch at her clone with it to send her flying like the last time they both touched the coin, but the other hand was there to pin it down. Even if she struggled she knew she wouldn't get out from her spot. "It's no use Marine. I promise to take care of all your little friends. None of them will get hurt." Marine froze and she glared up at her clone with such anger that it might have been possible for her to burn something.

"You've already broken it long before you ever stepped foot on this ship. Jones was the last straw."

"He had it coming. He was supposed to be on my side."

"You threatened him to join you with the church. If it had been with nothing he wouldn't have sided with you in the first place."

"The fact is, he sided with me and in the middle of it, he decided to play traitor and helped the others out."

"Funny. A few moments ago you were just telling Maurice that you didn't care about traitors."

"Well then that just makes both you and I selfish pricks am I right?"

"Hey now, my Marine isn't a selfish prick." Both women were startled by the sound of the familiar voice. It came from behind Marine and in her current position she couldn't look at who it was. But her clone could see very easily and her expression was one of surprise and disbelief. "She's pretty generous when it comes to coins, aren't you lass?" The question and the underlying meaning behind it was enough for Marine to move into action. The hand that held hers down had loosened, even if the knee hadn't, and she jerked it free to throw a punch at her clone with the coin flashing right at her.

She didn't understand what happened next, but she knew that it was only right. It felt right to her as if there was something that was beginning to fill her internally, like some special water for her soul. She hardly noticed anyone else present. Her strength was coming back to her, as if she was sleeping and was re-energizing herself. But along with all that relief came something like a pounding headache. Information and memory, those of her clone's began to fill her head. When she thought she couldn't take any more, more came. All of her clone's memory, from the very beginning up until the very last, pushed itself forcibly into her mind. She saw images of what her clone did and the people she met. She saw the faces of her friends, Jack, Will, Elizabeth, and everyone else.

The last image that was in her clone's mind was the image of the man who had spoken, the man who had saved her from being the one sucked in. Her clone showed her an image of a man who stood casually by the frame, leaning against the wall with his arms crossed and a cheeky grin on his face. One Marine would always remember as the grin that appeared whenever he was sure of something; confident that he was going to win no matter what. She smiled for a split second then had to stop as the pain grew worse. Biting back a groan, she held her head and tried to massage her head. Slowly, and with relief, the pain subsided and all that remained was pure exhaustion.

Her eyes went towards the coin that fell on the ground when her clone disappeared, merging with her own self. It took her a moment to realize it, that she was still thinking consciously without the touch of the coin. With her slowly regaining strength she pushed herself up from the ground and sat with her legs crossed. Then she looked up as the other man moved towards her, still with that same familiar grin of his.

"You still remember who I am...don't you?" He asked as he pointed to himself. Marine looked indignant as she poked his head.

"What kind of a question was that? Of course I still remember you! You still have that debt you owe me after all."

"Drats. And here I thought I could get away with that one." He said and chuckled. Her eyes scanned his whole body from top to bottom. A few minutes ago she had watched her clone stab through him and toss him aside like a rag doll. Now he stood before her with no blood on him and looking like the best man in the world.

"How did you...what...?" Jones lifted up his shirt in reply and Marine saw a bag strapped to him. The bag had a small slit, at exactly the point where her clone had stabbed him. He shook the bag and the sound of jingling coins echoed in the prison cells.

"If I knew that thieving could save lives, I would have preached it to the whole world." Marine stared at the bag he had and laughed.

"If I knew, I would have taken up thieving over pirating." Then as an afterthought, "You didn't take any from Jack's crew...did you?" His innocently scandalized expression told her everything she needed to know.

"What? Me? Steal from my own mates? Never!" Marine rolled her eyes at the apparent lie but let it go. There were more things that they had to deal with first. Jones sensed it as well as his cheer faded and he looked at Marine seriously.

"It's finally over...isn't it?" Marine could hardly believe it herself. She half expected someone to pop out and tell them that it wasn't, that the troubles were only beginning. But the silence was a strangely comforting thing. She looked back at the thief and nodded with relief all over her face.

"Yeah...I guess it is." The other man nodded, just as relieved as she was, and stood up while holding out his hand for her.

"We better go to the others. They must be worried about what's happened to you. Then after that, it'll be time for celebrations!" Marine grabbed his hand and let him pull her up on her feet while she smiled and laughed, nodding to him as she laced an arm around his. It was like all of her exhaustion was gone the moment she was back to her whole self.

"Drinks all around!"

* * *

With the snake taken care of, the Royal Navy obviously losing the battle and his men already working to clean up the mess on the deck, Jack was able to turn his attentions to other problems. The one that stood out the most was none other than his female pirate friend. The lack of news from Elizabeth and the others below deck worried him. But as he began to make his way for the stairs Gibbs moved in front of him, blocking his path.

"Uh...captain, what are we going to do with the guards?" He furrowed his brows then turned his gaze to Norrington.

"Ask Norrington." And without any other order or explanation he moved past his first mate and continued his way down the deck.

"Captain!" The urge to cry out in frustration came but he held back. He was after all the captain and it was only right that his men came to him asking what they should do, even though at the moment he was beginning to hate how dependent they were of him. He glanced at the man who called for him and without stopping spoke and went past him.

"Ask Will."

"Captain,"

"Ask Teague."

"Captain..."

"Ask..." That was when he realized that there was no one else to ask who was above the deck. He paused as he thought of this and as quickly as he paused, he resumed walking. "Ask Teague."

All around him he could sense the anti-climax of a battle. What was left was one of the things he hated about battling; the cleaning up. Sometimes he wondered why the victors have to work even when they already won against their enemies. His men were clearing the deck, throwing the corpses of the guards into the water and gathering the ones of their allies to a pile. They deserved a better treatment and there was going to be a proper funeral for them. Those who survived with injuries were being taken care of by Roderic and his other men. The snake was nowhere to be seen but as long as they had a fang they didn't need to know where it was going to go or what it was going to do as long as it didn't concern them. The guards who survived were being dealt with by, Jack was relieved to see, Norrington. They ought to work out something with that.

When he came down he saw that they were cleaning up the mess as well. Pirates were bringing the dead guards above to throw them into the water and his men were being taken care of. He saw Cornelius and Tia but not Elizabeth. Looking at the room where he locked Marine in, he saw that it was unlocked and wide open but with no Marine in sight. Dread began to get to him as he moved towards the witch doctor and the older man.

"Cornelius, Tia darling, where is Lizzie and Marine?"

"Elizabeth and Jones went further below deck to check on Marine." Cornelius replied. He told Jack a brief summary of what happened. When they unlocked the door to the room Marine was in, when her clone suddenly arrived and attacked Jones, then when she and Marine fought while moving further inside. "At this point the guards arrived and we were all too busy fighting to see what had happened next." More dread began to rise in Jack but he fought hard not to panic. After all, just because Marine and her clone fought each other with no one to be there to help doesn't mean that Marine is gone.

"All right...keep up the good work. I'll go check on them." He nodded to the two before pushing past them and the rest of his men. As he moved, his ears strained for any sound that would tell him what was happening within. He caught sound a few seconds later and associated it with crying and sniffles. His whole body tensed and he began to walk faster. He first saw Jones coming back from within and saw his grave face. He could barely keep his anxiety any longer as he stepped up towards Jones and held him firmly by the shoulders.

"Jones! Where's Marine? What's happened?" He asked. Jones said nothing but he had a sad look on his face as he shook his head. It felt like a very large and heavy rock suddenly collapsed on him. He took a deep breath and nodded to him before letting go and moving even further within. Even though he didn't want to see it, he wanted to be sure of himself. He had been so confident, so sure that everything was going to be all right and that there was no need for him to worry about the 'what ifs'. It seemed that it wasn't going to happen anymore, and he wondered just how he should treat this new Marine. As he walked on, he saw Elizabeth hugging someone else in the middle of the way between where he was standing and the prison cells. With his brows furrowed in confusion he took one more step forward and coughed to get their attention. Elizabeth pulled away and the two turned their gazes to Jack. The pirate captain saw that Marine had been the person Elizabeth was hugging and that the blond haired woman was smiling with tears in her eyes.

"Jack...Marine won! It's our own Marine who's standing here with us now. Jones had saved her from her clone." She explained. Marine had a similar smile on her face but when she saw Jack it slowly disappeared and an awkward air appeared in their midst. She was unsure how to react to Jack, especially seeing that he had a slightly depressing expression on his face. Elizabeth looked from one to the other and gave a soft sigh as she grabbed Marine's arm and pulled her towards Jack. When they were standing meters apart she released her and nudged the other woman. Marine turned her helpless gaze to Elizabeth, wondering what she expected her to do, before looking at Jack and giving him a nervous smile.

"Uh...well...I don't know how to prove that I'm the one you guys have been with this whole time. But I guess the fact that Maurice is still alive - my clone wanted to kill him because he killed Carrie - should prove that I'm not the clone. And...Jones could vouch for it. He saw us fighting and saw when I merged - " She had no chance to continue as Jack muffled anything else she was about to say by wrapping her in his arms and pulling her tight against his chest. She widened her eyes in surprise as Jack tightened his arms around her.

"Of course I believe you. I never doubted it for a second. The winning side is always Captain Jack Sparrow's side after all." He released her and pulled away from her just in time to catch the female pirate rolling her eyes at him. They looked at each other and smiled with Marine chuckling as well. Elizabeth couldn't help but smile as she watched the scene before her. She moved towards Marine and grabbed her arms as she excitedly pulled her away from Jack and back towards the others.

"Come on Marine! We have to share this good news to everyone."

"And party! We definitely have to have a party!" Marine said in agreement. Jack smiled as he watched the two women skip in the corridor and followed them from behind. Lots of laughing and cheering greeted them as Marine appeared before the others and was engulfed by hugs, slaps on the back and bright grins. He looked around and caught sight of Jones who stood not far from the group and watched with a smile. When he caught Jack's gaze he gave a mock salute, his eyes twinkling with mischief before he winked at the pirate captain. Jack frowned at the thief and muttered under his breath.

"Bloody thief."


	45. A New Beginning

**AN: **Hey!! I'm sorry this took months to finish. My work has been pretty hectic so I couldn't get enough time to finish the chapter quickly. But you guys will have nothing to worry about now. I have finally reached the last chapter of this story! I'd like to thank everyone who have been reading my stories and to those who give me reviews. Those reviews have cheered me up greatly and they kept me from giving up when I thought I couldn't do it anymore. So without further ado, here is the last chapter. I hope you enjoy it. And keep an eye out for more of my stories if you're interested. XD

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_**"Everyone has something they had left behind to come back to while others end one chapter of their life and begin a new one." - Tia Dalma**_

**Chapter 45 - A New Beginning**

Everything felt different to Marine but at the same time, it felt like she just put on some clothes that she hadn't worn in a long time. She walked about the deck, trying to get used to her body again as if in rehabilitation. She was positive that there wasn't anything different about her body. She didn't gain any weight or acquired more scars much to her relief but the feeling was there nonetheless. All of her clone's memories were scattered all over her mind - more than two month's worth of it - trying to force her to register them and giving her constant aches. But she fought them off and stubbornly refused to sit down and rest like everyone told her to. Presently she was watching the crew set up targets. She was going to see if she had lost her skill or if it was still there.

Gibbs and the others were setting objects about the deck excitedly as they tried to get as much entertainment from Marine's performance as possible. Some were on the ground while others were in spots twice as high as she was. The objects were a variety of shapes and sizes, allowing Marine to test her aim as much as possible. She recalled a time when she had done something similar, back when she had met Jack and recruited her into his crew. A smile grew on her face at the memory of it and she couldn't help but glance at Gibbs with a mischievous smile. Cornelius and the others were there to witness her performance as well, standing by the side as they waited for the show to start. Jones was busy making bets with the crew on how many targets Marine could hit.

"Come on, come on folks! Start betting before Marine starts throwing knives."

"I better get a share of that you jerk." Marine told him. The thief glanced at Marine and winked.

"Anything for my little money-maker."

"Marine, are you sure you're well enough to do this?" Will asked in concern. It was Elizabeth who answered for the female pirate.

"I'm sure Marine will be fine. If she faints then it just means that we get to tell her to rest for a few days without her objecting to it." Marine winced at that remark.

"That's just mean Liz."

"All right lass, we've prepared the stage for you." Gibbs said as he walked up to the female pirate. With a grin and a wink, he slapped her back in a playful manner. "Don't let me down now ya hear?" Marine chuckled then grinned back.

"Loud and clear." Jones saw that everything was ready and that he had enough bets to make a fortune. He then made his way to the center and cleared his throat to get everyone's attention.

"Ladies and gentlemen, the stage has been set so let us all give Marine one big round of applause before she begins!" All the crew cheered and hooted, the sound of clapping filling the air. Marine gave a small and appreciative bow to the thief before stepping up to the center and taking in all the targets she saw. The whole deck fell in silence as they watched Marine slowly take out her first knife. She fingered it slowly, getting used to the feel of the blade in her hand. Her eyes stared hard at every object, aiming for a barrel with a painted bullseye at her left. Then with a flash her weapon flew through the air towards the center of the dot. In as few as 10 seconds she had thrown 20 blades, 15 of which hit their target exactly where Gibbs and the others had set them. Marine glanced around the excited and cheery crowd as she exhaled, laughing as Jones came up to her and grabbed her arm to raise it in the air with triumph.

"Ladies and gentlemen, I present to you the ever-skilled Sharpshooter Marine!!" There were a few groans among the group, more specifically those who had made the wrong bet. And with that, the show had ended. Marine walked past the men who began picking up the mess and exchanging coins with Jones at the very center of it all. Her eyes caught sight of Teague who was standing behind the large crowd, waiting for his turn to get his share. When he looked at her he grinned and tipped his hat to her, a mysterious, knowing smile on his face. Marine smiled back and nodded to him in acknowledgment. Her eyes moved over the people on the deck until they landed on Jack Sparrow's cabin. Suddenly her good mood fell and she felt a sense of confusion and slight apprehension rise.

The last time Marine spoke with Jack was during the end of their battle with her clone. Since then every time she attempted to get near the pirate captain to speak to him, he would dodge her either physically or with an excuse. And if he wasn't out doing work or speaking to the others, he was holed up in his cabin; locked in from anyone who wanted to enter. It pissed her off to see him running away from her and refusing to answer the question they both knew she wanted to ask. Finally she had given up and the air between them seemed even more distant than before.

"We can tie him to a chair and lock the two of you in his cabin if you want." Marine turned around in surprise, seeing Will standing there. She sighed and smiled sadly as she shook her head at him.

"Thanks for the offer but I don't think it would work out that way."

"I suppose you're right." Will said with a sigh of agreement.

"Will, I appreciate the concern, but really, it's okay. I think this is what's best for everyone." The young blacksmith saw the look in Marine. A determined but strangely resigned expression dominated her face. He looked at her and sensed that there was something else.

"What do you mean by that?" He asked. Marine turned her gaze to the sea and took a deep breath before looking back at Will.

"I've decided to go back to my own world."

"What?! But...but...when did you decide? When are you going back?"

"Doesn't matter when I decided. I'm leaving as soon as I've said goodbye to everyone on the ship. There's no reason for me to stay here." She began. "I merged with my clone. No one's trying to chase me around the world. And I can't imagine myself living a life of piracy for the rest of my life." She looked at Will who seemed slightly disappointed but nodded to her as a small smile appeared on his face.

"I understand. I respect your decision, but it doesn't mean that I like it." He said. Marine chuckled and nodded. It was as much approval as she ws going to get from him; and from everyone else, she figured. She walked up to him and hugged him tightly, her body relaxing in relief when Will hugged her back.

"Thanks Will. For everything." After a few seconds she pulled away and walked past the young blacksmith towards Elizabeth and Tia who were both speaking to each other. Will watched her as she greeted to the two other women then looked at the main cabin with a frown.

* * *

By the late afternoon everyone knew of Marine's decision to leave Jack's crew and a life of piracy. Some of the men were waiting in anticipation, wondering when they would get their turn to say goodbye to the female pirate as well as trying to prepare something for her as a remembrance gift. What Jack's men didn't know, and only a number of them do, was the fact that when Marine leaves, she was never going to see any of them again. Teague found his son in the galley, sitting in one of the chairs and biting on an apple he took from the pantry. He sighed as he made his way towards Jack and sat down on the chair in front of him. The pirate captain said nothing as he watched his father sit down and stare at him.

"Have you heard the news of Marine's decision?" Teague asked.

"'Course I heard. The men won't stop blabbing about it." Jack replied. Teague tried to see what emotion was playing on the other's face but he couldn't get anything out of him. He sighed as he leaned back and frowned disapprovingly at the younger man.

"I warned ya about fallin' in love with the girl, lad."

"Who said I was in love? Marine has permission to leave the Black Pearl anytime she wants to. She doesn't have some obligation to my ship and my crew." Teague said nothing to that and instead asked Jack another question.

"Is this really what you want? What purpose would you have in pushing her away if it will only hurt her as well as yourself? I know you've been avoiding her for the past few days. Bloody hell everyone knows about it! And everyone can see as well that it's making the two of you miserable. What's the matter Jack? What's holding you back?" Jack said nothing to him, simply taking a bite from his apple. Teague sighed again as he stood up from the chair and began to walk away. He stopped halfway towards the exit and looked over his shoulder at his son.

"Before you go convincing the world that you don't love the lass why don't you try convincing yourself of that first." He made his exit with those final words, leaving Jack sitting on his seat with his unfinished apple forgotten in his hand.

As if discussing her had summoned her, Marine came into the galley and stood by the entrance as she looked at Jack a bit warily. She had passed by Teague who revealed no emotion on his face and it unnerved her. Even the air in the galley seemed to radiate some heavy tension. Marine looked at Jack as he finally took notice of her and said nothing. When she saw him she realized that she didn't know whether it was a good idea to talk to him and began having second thoughts.

"I...uh...I'll come back later when you're not busy." She turned around and was prepared to run away when Jack stood up from the chair he was sitting on.

"Marine wait!" The female pirate stopped at his command and turned back around to find Jack moving towards her until he was standing a feet away from her. But aside from his call to her, he didn't say anything else. Marine stood there and raised an eyebrow at Jack.

"Are you planning on telling me why you told me to wait or are you just going to keep standing there and staring at me?" She asked. As if that broke Jack out of his thoughts, he suddenly focused his gaze at Marine.

"Why are you abandoning us?" Marine widened her eyes at him. Of all the questions that she thought Jack would ask her, the question he asked was not one of them.

"What?! What the hell are you talking about? I'm not abandoning anyone."

"Sure you are. You're going back to that old boring world of yours aren't you? You're leaving everyone here behind."

"Stop. Don't. You can't make me choose between this life and the other."

"No, I can't. But I can make you rethink your decision. Why do you want to go to the other side when you know that they're suspicious of your disappearance as well as Carrie's? If you go there, you'll only end up in their dungeons or whatever passes for one over there. What does the other side have that this side doesn't?"

"Well I know one thing that the other side won't have, that's for sure." Jack's eyes narrowed in anger.

"Why must you be insistent on leaving?"

"Why must you be insistent on making me stay?" Marine countered back. The two pirates looked at each other and the tension increased even more. Then Jack finally sighed and, to Marine's surprise, walked past her towards the exit of the galley. Marine stood there dumbfounded by Jack's actions. They didn't make any sense to the female pirate.

"That's it? You're going to leave it like this?" She asked as she turned around to face the pirate captain. "You're not even going to give me a reason why you want me to stay here instead of leaving this world?"

"What would it matter? You're still leaving no matter what reason I give you." He said. Marine didn't know how to answer that. Even she was beginning to have second thoughts of leaving. But now that Jack had spoken, she was even more determined to leave. She was going to leave so that she would never see Jack Sparrow's face ever again. The thought both comforted her and depressed her. As Jack stepped out of the galley he raised an eyebrow at the sight of Will, Elizabeth, Jones, Cornelius and Tia lounging about. He ignored them all, pretended not to care and walked past everyone towards the upper deck.

To keep from being caught by Marine the way Jack had caught them, they all made their way further down the hall towards the crew's quarters. There were a few pirates resting there but a word and a few coins convinced them to find some other place to relax. Once the pirates were out of sight none of them knew what to say or where to start. It was Elizabeth who decided to speak up first.

"We can't let them go on like this! We all know Jack has feelings for Marine but why won't he admit to them?? Why is he letting Marine leave?" Will placed a comforting hand on top of his wife's and calmed her down.

"Elizabeth, I understand how much you want to help them, but I don't think it would be a good idea to force them together." He said. "It would never work out that way."

"True...but there must be something we could do to help. Anything at all. Marine will be leaving us for good very soon. If Jack doesn't get the courage to stop her..."

"Then let's delay her leave." Jones suggested. All eyes turned towards the thief as he gathered the group around himself. "We make Marine delay her leave. Convince her that leaving right at this moment is not a wise decision. Then we can give Jack at least a few more moments to gather up the courage to speak with Marine and ask her to stay."

"And how do you propose we do that? Marine wouldn't agree to staying here longer without reason." Will asked.

"We throw her a farewell party!" Cornelius cried cheerfully. "We should hold a celebration before she leaves. If we convince her enough, that would give Jack at least until tomorrow to talk with her." Elizabeth's eyes shined brightly and she clapped her hands excitedly.

"That's a brilliant idea Cornelius! We should tell everyone to prepare as quickly as possible. Marine wouldn't refuse if everyone's already worked hard to prepare for it."

"I'll gather the men and tell them the news!" Jones cried as he turned around and ran out of the crew's quarters like a fire was catching up to him. As he left Elizabeth turned her gaze to the rest, standing up and crossing her arms over her chest.

"All right. We'll need to prepare quickly if we want to convince Marine to stay. Tia, could you help with the cooking? Will, you and Cornelius help Jones gather the crew and get to work in preparing the party. I'll go look for Marine and convince her to stay." Everyone nodded at the delegation of tasks and set of to work quickly. One by one they walked out of the room with purpose. Elizabeth left the crew's quarters last, hoping that their idea worked.

* * *

Unknown to Elizabeth and the others, as they were discussing their plans in the quarters, Marine had already made up her mind. She didn't want to stay a minute longer on the Pearl with Jack. That nagging insistant voice she could hear in the depths of her mind kept shouting at her; telling her that what she was doing was wrong. She refused to believe it and wanted to get it over with before she lost the courage or the brains to do it. The aztec coin she had around her neck was now in her hand. She played with it and watched the sun throw reflections against it like fireflies.

Thoughts of home filled her mind as she closed her eyes and took a deep breath. Her hand tightened around the coin, her mind threw back thoughts of the Caribbean, the Pearl and Jack. In her mind she could picture her room. A simple bed, a simple nightstand, with dark curtains drawn over her window. How long had it been since she cooked food in her kitchen; took a nice long bath in her bathroom while putting up scented candles and dowsing herself in an aromatic, soothing bath oil? She could already imagine herself back there, dressed for work. Pencil and large amounts of paper on her desk, waiting for her to put her art onto the white blank spaces. She had missed all those things, missed the people in her life back there, but a small dark seed was lodged in her heart. She knew she had to go. She didn't belong in the Caribbean as a pirate. It wasn't her.

_But then again, was she still the same Vanessa Silvestre from back then?_

When she opened her eyes she saw the portal in front of her. A large lump grew in her throat and she could feel butterflies going nuts in her stomach. She gritted her teeth and drew slow, steady breaths as she flexed her hands which were beginning to sweat and tremble.

"Don't be such a pathetic wuss Marine." She had a second thought and shook her head. "Vanessa. You're Vanessa. You're not a pirate, you're a comic artist. A good comic artist who's probably going to get grilled by her boss and her co-workers on going AWOL for months...maybe years. There's nothing to be afraid of. You're not going to get hurt."

_Because I already am._

"Marine." Without realizing it the female pirate turned her head around and saw Jack standing not far from her. She cursed in the back of her head and gave herself a mental note to stop thinking that she was Marine. There was going to be a lot of trouble in the future if she kept calling herself by that name. When she was done thinking to herself she narrowed her eyes at Jack.

"What do you want?"

"I'm just here to witness your departure. You know, say goodbye, take care and all that." He replied. "Don't mind me. Feel free to get back to what you were doing before." Marine raised an eyebrow at him but said nothing. She gave up on trying to figure out what the pirate captain was thinking and turned her focus back on the portal. She felt uncomfortable knowing there was someone watching her, especially if that someone was the man she didn't want to see right then.

She closed her eyes again. This was it. She was going to leave Pirates of the Caribbean for good. Her thoughts began to wander to the DVD's she had and how she might plan to throw them out, sell them or burn them to ashes when she felt a warm breath close to her ear as well as the warm presence of a body moving up close to hers. She hadn't even sensed him or heard him moving.

"And for the record, I do love you." Marine's whole body froze just as her leg was in mid-air and about to take the step forward into the portal. A second passed before gravity kicked in and she lost her balance. She began to fall forward but she reached out with her hands back, willing them to grab a hold of something and keep her from missing out on the most important sentence she'd heard from Jack. To her relief, her hands caught something and she pulled herself back, right into Jack's arms. She looked up at the grinning face and didn't know what she wanted to do with it.

"If you are doing this just to convince me not to leave..."

"No, actually I just wanted to say it to make you mad." He said. He began to feel the irritation growing inside her and sighed as he fixed his hold on her. "Yes, I admit that that was too sudden and too offhanded. Does milady want me to kneel down before her and shower her with my undying love?"

"What I want to know is if you really mean it. And why you're only telling me this now."

"First, yes, I do mean it. Second, I didn't tell you because...well I'm Captain Jack Sparrow. And never before have I had said such words to anyone save my Pearl and rum. But you're about to leave. And because I am indeed in love with you, I should let said love lead me to the right decision, which would be to stop my woman from leaving me and turning me into a horrid mess." He took her hands in his and looked at her intensely.

"Look Marine, I'm sorry that I didn't tell you sooner. I was...hesitant about it because even I wasn't sure of my own feelings. You know how I've been with other woman. I could get any woman I wanted, in fact if I had wanted, I could have forced myself on you and you wouldn't be able to fight it. You know I could. But I didn't. Because somehow I knew you were different from them all. You had become one of my closest friends and I soon began to realize that it was becoming more than that. Or I wanted it to become something more. But you deserved better than me...than this." He looked away for a few seconds before looking back at her again. "I was going to let you go, have you do whatever it is that you wanted. But I'm a pirate love. I'm selfish. And I want you to be with me. I don't care what happens to your life back there. I need you here by my side." The two stared at each other in silence. After a few minutes Jack rolled his eyes and threw his hands up in the air as he took a step back from Marine and her skeptical glance.

"Bloody hell, Marine! Here I am, confessing about feelings that a pirate wouldn't normally have with a woman and you're just standing there and looking at me with that kind of glance? You wound me."

"Can you blame me? How do I know that this isn't some trick of yours so you could get me to stay. In fact, I don't even know why you want me to stay; if all this is just some kind of farce, why would you want me to stay?"

"I don't know. You're the one who seems intent on believing that I'm lying." He moved back to stand closer to her and placed his hands on her shoulders firmly. "What I do know is that whether you believe me or not, I'm not. We made a promise to trust each other no matter what and I haven't broken my word on that. I wish you would stick to your own promise and trust me in return." Marine looked at him and exhaled deeply as she looked down at her hand. Then she glanced back to where the portal was and watched it disappear.

"Well, now that I lost my reason to leave, I don't know what to do with this anymore." She said as she looked at Jack with a grin. Jack returned it as he took the coin from her hands.

"Leave that to me." He turned to his side and with a grunt threw the coin into the sea as far as he could. They watched it fly in the air before it fell into the water with a tiny splash. Jack turned his gaze back to Marine and wrapped his arms around her waist. "Now, where were we...?"

"I believe you were about to show your undying love to me." She said.

"Ah yes, that I shall." The moment Marine felt Jack's lips on hers she knew that deciding to stay was the best decision of her life. She wrapped her arms around him and kissed deeper, her love for the pirate captain overflowing now that Jack had broken the dam that clogged it all up. When the need for oxygen became too strong they pulled away. But they kept their arms around each other as they smiled brightly. Elizabeth appeared at that moment, still unaware of the position the two pirates were in.

"Marine! There you are. I've searched the whole ship for you. I - " She lost words as she looked at both Marine and Jack. She couldn't miss their hands as well as their faces and the mood that hung around them. "What is going on?" She asked.

"I've decided to stay Liz." Marine answered with a laugh. "By some stroke of luck Jack's conviced me to stay here."

"Stroke of luck?! I'll have you know that you were easily convinced by my attractive, good-looks and my undeniable skills in the ways of women." Jack scoffed. Marine rolled her eyes but she couldn't fight off the smile on her face. Elizabeth looked at the two of them and felt her heart grow warm. She smiled as she made her way towards Marine and hugged her.

"Luck or not, I'm glad with your decision. Now come along you two, we are going to have a party to celebrate the occasion. Jones and the others are already preparing for it." Jack and Marine looked at each other in confusion as they allowed the blond haired woman to grab their hands and drag them back to the main deck.

"You mean you knew that this was going to happen from the start?" Marine asked.

"Well, the party was supposed to be meant for your farewell, but don't you think this is a better cause?"

"Yeah." She said as she felt eyes on her and turned to gaze at Jack, who chuckled and winked at her when she looked at him. "Definitely a better cause."

* * *

Marine stood by the deck as she watched men prepare the longboat for leaving. The Black Pearl had docked farther from the island, inconvenient for those taking the trip but just good enough for those leaving behind. Norrington had assured them that he wasn't going to capture them today, but that didn't mean the rest of the Royal Navy on Port Royal would promise the same. He made the surviving guards swear to stay silent about the whole thing with Marine; that they simply had gone into battle with the Black Pearl and escaped with the leadership of Norrington when they saw that it was no use struggling. The guards were more than eager to follow since death was the next option for them if they refused.

"We're going to miss all of you." Elizabeth said as she gave a warm embrace for each of them who were staying. Will and Norrington stood a little behind the blond haired woman but they both shared the same feelings Elizabeth did.

"We'll miss you too Liz. It's too bad we can't visit you as often as we like." Marine said.

"No worries love, as Captain Jack Sparrow and the equally infamous Sharpshooter Marine I'm sure we can risk a visit or two from time to time, isn't that right Norry?"

"Don't get your hopes up Sparrow. I will capture you someday." Norrington replied.

"You just keep telling yourself that mate. Now off you go, you and the two lovebirds. We'll be expectin' little tiny whelps running around the next time we see you." He told the couple.

"And we'll be expecting baby sparrows flying all over your deck when we do meet again." Will countered. Teague had a thoughtful expression on his face as he crossed his arms and pursed his lips.

"Having grandchildren doesn't sound bad actually..." Marine widened her eyes and turned red at the comments but Jack simply chuckled and grinned as he wrapped an arm around Marine's waist and pulled her closer to him. They all saw it, saw that Marine made no move to push him away, and smiled.

"We'll see." Jack said in response to Will. The whole group waved goodbye to those headed for Port Royal and watched the boat until it disappeared from their sights. Jack waited for the boat to disappear before removing his hold on Marine and striding towards the helm, barking a command at every direction.

"Make sure the sails are set and have men ready to lift anchor. As soon as the boat returns we're leaving the island." Jones stood beside Marine and gave a loud yawn as he stretched his arms above him.

"Ahh, finally! After all this time of sleeping in a swaying hammock, living a life of fear and continuous battles, it's good to head back home." He said. Marine smiled at him and punched his arm playfully.

"Don't forget that you still have a load of debt to me Jones." She said. The thief grinned back but said nothing. The two knew, criminal or not, he was a man of his word, especially to his friends.

"Will you continue living the life of a thief?" Tia asked him. "The life of a savior to the poor, an adversary to the rich?"

"I prefer calling it a mission to the less fortunate. A better title than a thief. But I wouldn't mind being called Robin Hood of Port Nassau." Jones replied with a cheeky grin. "And what about you Miss Tia Dalma? No doubt you'll continue to make potions, brew herbal drinks and such in your little shack?"

"Aye lad, that I will. Everyone has something they had left behind to come back to while others..." She glanced at Marine as she said this. "End one chapter of their life and begin a new one."

"Well said Tia Dalma." Cornelius said as he bowed to the witch doctor in agreement.

"Oi! Are you all just going to stand there and chat idly? Your still riding on my ship and you're all still working under my command. Get back to work! Except you Tia. You're free to roam about." Jack added when he saw a warning look cross the witch doctor's face. With a groan Jones dragged his feet towards a couple of them who were tying ropes while the rest dispersed to help the crew. Jack gave a huff of satisfaction at seeing his ship, his crew and most importantly his woman near him. The pirate captain never thought he'd be falling for a woman but he has and for some reason he couldn't explain, he was happy.

"She's a keeper. Not like your mother, no she tended to be more fiesty and wild." Jack turned around and saw Teague standing beside him. "But Marine is just as fierce and passionate a woman as your mom was." The pirate captain wasn't sure how to answer to that so he just kept silent. Father and son watched as the crew was close to completing the preparations to set sail.

"I'll be expecting you and the lass to visit me frequently when you have kids."

"We haven't even gotten through one day together and already half the people expect us to have kids! What is wrong with you all?" Jack cried with irritation.

"Well knowing you Jackie boy I wouldn't be surprised if you get her pregnant in a week." Jack snorted at his father.

"That's what you'd think, wouldn't it? Of course everyone expects Captain Jack Sparrow to do that. Well, maybe I'll prove you all wrong!" At that moment Marine gave a cry of surprise as a bucket of water fell down on her. She cursed and spluttered as she tried to wring herself dry. The man responsible was apologizing to the female pirate while the rest simply laughed. Then she gave them all loud strings of threat as she began making her way towards her cabin.

Jack had seen the doused Marine, with her wet clothes clinging to her body and revealing curves that were not usually visible, as well as her angry face, and beyond his wildest comprehension the sight of the female pirate in such a state aroused him. That and the fact that she would be changing out of her wet clothes. He left the wheel unmanned, unthinkingly gave the charge of the helm to his father and strode towards Marine like a predator chasing its prey. Marine caught sight of him and was about to ask him what was wrong when he grabbed her and suddenly swooped her into his arms. Catcalls and cheers from his men came roaring as Jack made his way to his cabin.

"I thought you were going to prove me wrong Jackie boy!" Teague shouted.

"To hell with that! I've been waiting for this moment for bloody months! I'm not going to wait a month longer just to prove to you what I can't prove in the first place." Teague watched as his son and his new woman went into the cabin, slamming the door loudly for everyone to hear. It only meant one thing; don't disturb the pirate captain or face the consequences. The Keeper of the Codes chuckled and shook his head from side to side with a small smile on his face. Then he looked at Jack's men and grinned.

"Well lads, you've been given over to my command so we best get out of here as soon as we can, aye?"

"AYE!"


End file.
